Angel of Eden & Creators of Chaos
by Zinnia QueenOfChaos
Summary: Everything turns to chaos in Hogwarts, along with Harry's feelings for some certain Slytherins. Do Draco Malfoy and his relative have something to do with all this? Pairings: Harry/Draco mostly. WARNING: Mature Adult content, gay sex, hints of incest, and anything else you might think you've found while reading this story. Disclaimer: I don't own the characters (J.K. does)
1. Who tiptoes in the night and hides in

Harry/Draco, 8th year. This story became a monster and I had to divide it in two separate parts so here comes the first part _Angel of Eden & Creators of Chaos_ with chapters 1-7. The Sequel goes by the name _The Battle in the Cupboard_, it's 5 chapters.

**_Angel of Eden & Creators of Chaos_**

**Zinnia says**: I wanted to create some Chaos. In order to do that I broke the rules I've set myself as an author: I brought Draco's long lost relative in Hogwarts.

**Story Description**: Everything seems to turn to chaos in Hogwarts, along with Harry's feelings for some certain Slytherins. Do Draco Malfoy and his relative have something to do with all this? Why is Malfoy sneaking around at nights?

And then there's the Magical Cupboard where Harry gets trapped in... with Draco Malfoy.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the characters, J.K. does. I don't own anything else either.

**Warnings:** A LOT OF H/D KISSING! Possible mind fucking, hints of incest, gay sex (in the sequel), and anything else you might think you've found while reading this story.

Pairings: Harry/Draco, mostly.

I would like to thank my precious beta _**keria1123**_, who did an amazing job with this story and tolerated my attitude.

Chapter one – **_Who tiptoes in the night and hides in the shadows?_**

Draco heard footsteps coming from the moving staircase in front of him, someone was coming up here. He glanced around quickly to look for a good hiding place. There was absolutely no need to be caught by anyone tonight because he'd been wandering around the castle enough at night-time and there were only so many times you can use an excuse for being sneaking around after curfew, especially when you're a known ex-Death Eater.

He didn't wait to see who was coming up the stairs, instead he started to run quickly but very quietly back the way he'd come from. He knew he was fast enough to reach behind the next turn in the corridor and did, but unfortunately he bumped into something right after taking the turn. He tumbled onto something apparently invisible and came crashing down on it before noticing a hand appear from thin air.

Draco gasped knowing it had to be bloody Potter. Who else would be running around the castle in the middle of the night wearing an invisibility cloak?

"Potter!" He hissed and managed to get on his feet, taking a hasty look behind him but realizing he had managed to turn in the corner so he was out of sight of anyone coming up the stairs in the previous corridor.  
He made a face and dusted dirt off of his sleeves and was grateful for the dim lightning in the castle during night-time.  
He was upset and angry and didn't need Potter to see his face blush with irritation. Potter took of his invisibility cloak, stood up and suddenly pulled his wand out, pointing it at Draco, saying,

"I know you're up to something, Malfoy. Since it's not the first time either, I want you to come clean about it right now. So what have you been planning?"

Draco narrowed his eyes and reached for his own wand, but Potter lifted his wand a bit higher, closer to Draco's chest and muttered, "Don't even think about it!"

Draco let his arm fall to his side and said,  
"I had things to do, although it's none of your business, Potter! Besides I'm the one who should ask you the same question: you're still following me, so what have you been planning?"

Potter's eyes flashed warningly behind his ridiculous glasses. Draco could hear footsteps somewhere in the distance and suspected it must be either a teacher or Filch, and whoever it was would probably find the boys unless they hid somewhere. Potter said,

"'Things to do' isn't an excuse. I've seen you wandering around. Many times, in fact. You're planning something, Malfoy. Tell me now, or I'll push you around the corner and you'll get into trouble for being out at night."

The footsteps were clearly getting closer and Draco counted his possibilities inside his head. He could grab Potter and turn them both in for being outside their dormitories after curfew (of which Potter would probably survive without getting even detention), or he could simply push Potter out of the way and run but there was no certainty he would reach the next turn in the corridor before he would be seen.

Besides Potter might even stun him before he'd manage to go anywhere. Not getting a better idea he clenched his teeth and whispered to Potter,

"I swear to you, Potter, if we get caught now and it's your fault, then by the time you find out what I'm up to, it'll be too late for you to stop me. In fact I suppose the wisest thing for you would be to hide me and not let me get caught, and then I might give you some valuable answers in return."

Draco put a mask of nonchalance on his face, tilting his head a bit, looking Potter down his nose. Potter looked furious. Whoever was coming closer in the next corridor was probably only a moment away from finding them and before Potter even answered to Draco, he had pulled up his invisibility cloak, thrown it over them both and grabbed Draco's left arm, pulling the boy along.

They walked quickly but quietly, Potter's grip was hurting Draco's arm and Potter had his wand pressed against Draco's back, apparently making it a threat.  
Draco heard the unknown person turn in the corridor, walking right after them and Potter's steps were even more hurried now, pulling Draco along faster.

Draco forgot to breathe; he couldn't make himself turn to look over his shoulder to see who was coming after them (it must be Filch). He was waiting for someone to shout after them, he was sure his legs would show under the cloak but there was no voice telling them to stop. Then suddenly Potter stopped and pulled his arm, Draco quickly turned to look at Potter who motioned with his head. It was then Draco noticed there was a recess in the wall behind the dark haired boy. Potter pulled Draco right into it.

The short feeling of relief for getting out of the corridor into a recess and probably a safe hiding place was soon washed away when Draco realised how unbelievably small the recess was.  
His back was against the wall and his chest was pressed tightly against Potter's, who also had his back against the opposite wall.

_No_, Draco thought, _this place is too small, it's too small, I can't breathe…_

Potter clearly didn't know where to put his head because they were so close, finally he put his chin on Draco's left shoulder and took a deep breath. It sounded like Potter too had difficulties with breathing. It only made it more clear to Draco how awfully narrow the place they were in was.

Draco closed his storm grey eyes and tried to think about something else, he was trying to remember how to breathe, not as easy as it sounds. The footsteps were very close now and he realised he wouldn't be able to even see the unknown person because Potter's irritatingly messy hair was in the way.

In Draco's distressed mind the moment felt like an eternity, still the footsteps were on their way. Draco would never admit to Potter how much he hated narrow places, no, but he realised he was getting dizzy because he couldn't breathe nor move. The moment seemed to stretch longer and longer the more anguished Draco got.

_This is a nightmare, how did I end up in this situation…_

Finally he had to whisper into Potter's ear (which was too close anyway), "I can't breathe, I'll faint in thirty seconds."

Potter didn't reply, and Draco heard the footsteps finally (thank Merlin for that) pass them slowly, and right after the steps were gone Draco released the breath he was holding. Immediately his eyesight was blurring and then everything turned to black.

He tried to breathe in but didn't really know if he managed even that, but he tried to whisper to Potter anyway, "Don't tell anyone or else…"

When he woke up he was in the infirmary and Madame Pomfrey was looming over him, beginning an eager chatter as soon as Draco got his eyes open.

"Who brought me here?" He asked, voice dry and weak, ignoring Pomfrey's stupid questions and frowned in irritation with Pomfrey's obvious answer.

There was something in his mouth, which felt like a hair. He absentmindedly reached for it with his fingers and managed to get it out right before Pomfrey forced him to drink something which tasted like pumpkin juice.

He was on the verge of falling asleep when he noticed the hair was still between his fingers and was about to wipe it on the blanket when he noticed it wasn't a blond hair of his own - it was dark instead.

His eyes narrowed as he pulled it tighter with his both hands, observing it closely and realising who it must've belonged to. He smiled at the irony of it all.

ooOoOoo

The same night Harry Potter got under his blanket and couldn't fall asleep although he was exhausted. Draco Malfoy had been acting suspiciously for a while now.  
Harry had looked for him in the Marauder's map and seen him wandering around the castle at nights, almost like back in sixth year.

The whole situation seemed hopeless; Harry had been at Draco's trial and without Harry the ex-Death Eater would be in Azkaban – surely he couldn't be planning anything similar as he did in sixth year. Still, it was Draco Malfoy who had managed to get the Death Eaters in the school, who could possibly know for certain which side he really was on?

Everyone in the school seemed to believe Malfoy was regretting the things of the past and was trying to compensate that by being a good and very polite student – people were actually forgiving him, to Harry's surprise.

It wasn't a good thing; this had been the third time Malfoy had caught Harry following him. He would have to be more careful, otherwise Malfoy would never accidentally reveal anything useful about his doings. Harry was at a dead end.  
Tonight Malfoy had promised answers to Harry's questions and Harry could only hope he'd keep that promise.

Finally he drifted into a dream made of narrow corridors and shadows following him.


	2. Angel of Eden

**Zinnia says**: Where is Durmstrang? I always thought it was in Russia and I was surprised to read in an interview by J.K. she'd been thinking of the Nordic countries. Someone claimed it had to be Norway or Sweden, I don't know.  
I decided to make it Norway in this story.

Chapter 2 – **_Angel of Eden_**

A week later Harry still hadn't confronted Malfoy because Malfoy had suddenly stopped appearing on the Marauder's map at nights. This left Harry wondering if it was because Harry had been caught following him.

He had been considering the possibility of cornering Malfoy at daytime but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Malfoy had stopped wandering around during the daytimes too.

Instead Malfoy looked more relaxed now, the dark shades under his eyes had vanished and he had started eating again, even at breakfast which he hadn't been doing for some time before their encounter in the seventh floor a week ago.

As the Sunday owls dropped the letters of the morning, Ron was eating scrambled eggs and asked between mouthfuls, "You got another one?"

Harry was opening a small note that the owl had dropped. It was a common Hogwarts owl and the note was identical to the ones he had been receiving since the autumn term had started.

"Yeah," he said, as he read the note and threw it to Ron to read.

"Blimey," Ron muttered before tossing the note back to Harry who absentmindedly put it in his pocket.

Hermione appeared beside Ron and sat down, not even saying good morning. She had been developing a constant migraine, making her irritated and less sociable. She had clearly been trying to use all of her concentration on school work making Ron and Harry think the whole migraine must've been caused by the stress. She was way too studious when it came to homework, Harry decided.

Harry and Ron were somewhat worried because of Hermione's constant headaches and possible stress so they hadn't told Hermione about the notes Harry was receiving from someone anonymous. Apparently the same person had been following Harry since the term started.

Harry was certain the note sender and the follower were the one and same person although there hadn't been any evidence of it. Some weeks there was only one note in the morning, sometimes there were several notes during the week, and one time there had been three notes during the same day. Sometimes Harry thought he was being followed, at first thinking he was paranoid. By now he had gotten used to the shadow.

Ron had been concerned but Harry had insisted it was nothing serious. The notes were totally harmless and there wasn't anything important written on them.

The notes had started by saying things like, "I'm going to send you notes but don't panic, I'm a friend."

Then there had been some which had said things like, "I might even be a secret admirer", "Sometimes it's hard to tell who one can trust', 'If I were you I'd be careful not to tell everything to everyone."

The notes were weird but he and Ron had been laughing aloud at them on some mornings. It was so ironic, Harry thought, that the writer was talking about trust and claimed to be a friend – Harry didn't know of any friends who would send him notes instead of simply coming to talk to him.

Then again he was a celebrity and occasionally received the weirdest fan letters etc. so in contrast to all that, this might even be some first year girl who had a crush on Harry and didn't have the guts to come to talk to Harry.

Nothing serious then, nothing at all to worry about.

Harry had only once tried to find out the identity of his spy but it had gone all wrong. He had forgotten he'd loaned Marauder's Map to Hermione and couldn't go and ask her for it in the middle of the night so he had simply walked around the castle at first, making sure the usual shadow was following him.

Every time Harry turned around he could see a small movement, someone hiding behind something.

After an hour of this he finally hid behind a turn and put his invisibility cloak on but when his follower finally reached him, it wasn't his follower, but Malfoy who was once again walking around the castle!

Throwing away all the cautiousness in anger, Harry had pulled the cloak off and shouted,  
"Malfoy! You're following me!"

Malfoy looked a bit surprised before raising his wand and hissing, "What? You're the one who's been following me! I knew it, I knew it was you! Care to explain, Potter?"

Harry frowned, thinking for a minute of the possibility of both of them having someone following them.

No, Malfoy must be referring to the actual fact Harry had been following him.  
Although Harry didn't know Malfoy knew about it with certainty, not before this night, at least. Now it was clear though. Harry followed Malfoy and someone else followed Harry at the same time.

"Well? Let's hear it!' Malfoy had been growling, and it was then when Harry had noticed how tired the blond boy looked.  
Harry had simply said, 'I thought you were following me."

Malfoy actually lowered his wand a bit and shook his head, apparently confused about Harry's lack of anger. Harry was too deep in his thoughts about how wrong everything had went.

He was supposed to find out who was following him and instead he had nothing but admitted he'd been following Malfoy by not denying anything.  
He wasn't willing to start asking Malfoy any questions right now, being too embarrassed about 'getting caught' although this time he hadn't been even following the Slytherin in the first place. Shit.

So Harry did something one might think of as odd, he said, "I guess I was mistaken." And slowly walked past Malfoy, waiting for a shout or a flying curse hit him but nothing happened.

He didn't even look back but simply left, walked back to the Gryffindor tower and went to sleep.  
Deciding to find out the follower's identity as soon as the situation had calmed down a bit.

Later he had been too distracted by following Malfoy; he had almost forgotten someone was following him too. A constant shadow, always hiding out of sight, was getting more difficult to remember. He was sure he'd find out eventually.

"Merlin's beard, who the bloody hell is that?" Ron said and gasped.

Harry lifted his gaze from his plate, he had once again been thinking distractedly about Malfoy but now the sight that caught his eyes took his breath away completely.

_An angel_, Harry thought at first but then realised it's face reminded him strongly of Malfoy's, who in fact was walking side by side with this breathtaking creature. Calling it a creature inside his head was only due to the fact that no human or wizard boy could ever be that… beautiful.

The whole Great Hall seemed to have stopped chattering and everyone was gazing at the most beautiful boy, who had long white hair which reached past his shoulders.  
What made the sight angelic were the clothes he was wearing: he wore a snow white robe and everything in him looked so white_._

The eyes which were the same grey colour as Malfoy's - all the white in him seemed to make the eyes shine brighter, changing the colour into some absurdly tempting and calming shade.__

He must be wearing only the purest white, even his underwear must be the same colour, Harry barely realised what he was thinking as his brain made silent observations.

"He is gorgeous," Hermione breathed. It was now Harry managed to ask,

"Who is he? He looks a lot like Malfoy."

Ron should've given Hermione a look but he too was too absorbed in the sight, probably not even hearing Hermione's comment. Hermione muttered,

"The new student from Durmstrang. He's half veela and Malfoy's relative."

_That explain a lot,_ Harry thought. All three of them kept staring until the angelic sight reached the Slytherin table and sat across from Malfoy. At this point Harry cleared his throat and asked,

"Hermione, how do you know all this?"

Hermione managed to tear her eyes away from the Slytherin table and smiled a caring smile,

"Oh Harry, can't you remember? McGonagall told us there's going to be a new student this year. She just didn't tell us the boy would come in the middle of the term. I think he's a bit younger than us, possibly a fifth or sixth year student."

Ron had gone back to eating but seemed still occupied with his thoughts about the new comer.

Harry managed to sip his tea before curiosity won, "How's he related to Malfoy?"

Hermione shrugged, "I don't exactly know, I've just heard rumours. Apparently he and his family have been living in Norway for a while, hence Durmstrang, but apparently their family is back in Britain now. That's pretty much all I know."

The three of them ate rest of the breakfast in silence, everyone absorbing the new part of their reality.

As they were leaving the Great Hall there was a crowd of student in the entrance hall and out of curiosity they pushed through the crowd to get a closer look at what was happening.

Of course, the new boy was answering questions of the excited students, and he was giggling in a very un-Malfoy like, soft way which made Harry's abs suddenly clench.

The boy stopped laughing as he caught Harry's eyes and went still. Malfoy's sound was loud; apparently he was standing beside the boy although Harry couldn't see him,

"Clear off! I know he's gorgeous but you all will get your chance at harassing him so give him some space to breath!"

The crowd began to spread out and head to their classes but Harry couldn't move. The bright, grey eyes had nailed him on the spot.  
The boy was smiling. Suddenly the boy opened his mouth and said with the softest voice, "Harry."

All blood in Harry's body seemed to freeze for a second before starting to rush all over with warmth.

The boy took a step closer and reached out his hand, which Harry took without thinking. The boy said,

"You're Harry Potter."

Harry nodded, his brain was shutting down and he barely heard Malfoy's irritated snort.

"Hi, I'm Hermione Granger." Harry heard Hermione's voice and the grey eyes reluctantly moved from Harry's eyes into Hermione's.  
Then the boy let go of Harry's hand and was now squeezing Hermione's instead.

Harry suddenly became aware of the Slytherin standing right next to the angel and shifted his gaze into another set of grey eyes. These grey eyes were fierce and drilling Harry's eyes sharply, the gaze full of animosity.

Harry swallowed and shifted his eyes back to the angel who was now saying, "I'm Denebola but everyone calls me either Dene or Edeneye. Can I call you Hermione?"

Hermione seemed excited, "Denebola? Are you a part of the Black family?"

Dene nodded, smiled and asked, "Not closely but yes, I am. How did you know that?"

Hermione was probably blushing but Harry couldn't tear his eyes of the… _Edeneye? _

"Many members of the Black family have a name of a star or star pattern. Like Draco."

"I am a Malfoy, not a Black, Granger!" Malfoy said, clearly trying to sound polite although the tone revealed the irritation.

Dene's smile seemed to grow bigger, "Draco was right, you are observant and clever."

Ron cleared his throat and stretched out his hand, "Hi. I'm Ronald Weasley. Everyone calls me Ron."

Harry heard Malfoy snort again and took another glance at his piercing eyes, which apparently were still gazing at Harry, so Harry held the gaze for a moment.

"I've heard of the Weasleys," Dene said and his smile was still as big as it was before.

Ron asked, "Why would anyone call you Edeneye? It sounds like a girl's name."

Dene gave a soft laugh which made Harry automatically shift his gaze from Malfoy to Dene,

"You know, Ron, many people mistake me for a girl when they first see me and it doesn't bother me at all. I like to consider myself as a gender bender and I'm extremely broadminded as well."

Ron coughed, clearly embarrassed but managed to ask, "What does that mean?"

Malfoy snorted, clearly seeking some attention for himself but Harry kept watching at the angel like boy whose tone went softer, tempting again,

"Well I guess I meant to say I like boys as much as I like girls."

Ron hastily pulled his hand from the boy's grip, where he apparently had forgotten it. Harry blushed without being able to stop it. He could hear Hermione gasp for breath. Dene continued,

"My parents sometimes call me Edeneye. I guess they think Edeneye reminds them of Edinburgh somehow. I was born there, you see. Edinburgh was named after something relating to Eden… at least as far as I remember, I've never been too keen on studying and I have a lousy memory."

Dene released a small laugh, to which Malfoy snorted and said loudly, "Edinburgh's name has nothing to do with anything relating to Eden, you idiot. Check your facts before you begin to boast."

Harry looked at Malfoy and saw him clench his jaw in irritation, it made Harry smile suddenly.

"Oh, my sweet dragon, no need to fume," The tone had dropped incredibly low and soft, it almost seemed to vibrate in Harry's lower stomach and Harry's pulse quickened as he watched Dene turn to Malfoy.

Malfoy didn't look back but instead stared at the floor while Dene leaned closer and closer still, brushing against Malfoy's side before placing a soft kiss on Draco's neck.

"That's it! We're going to class, now!" Malfoy's tone was cold and angry. He turned to leave and nothing but stomped out of the sight, Dene following him elegantly, white robes glowing brightness along with the shining white hair.

The three Gryffindors were all standing in the same spot five minutes later, still speechless.


	3. The Magical cupboard

Zinnia says: I always wanted to put these boys in a cupboard with a reason to kiss.

I've received a lot of comments on the first story I published, After the War, thanks for the reviews. If you want me to answer to you, send me a private message. What do you think about extra character's in stories and how do you like Dene?

While I was writing this I thought it would be fun to give the other Cupboard my name - later on I started having second thoughts but couldn't really think of any other name anymore once I'd gotten used to it.

_**Chapter 3 The Magical cupboard**_

The whole school had suddenly gone off of its usual function as every student kept talking and whispering about the new student. Harry was lying on his bed thinking about Dene's voice when he suddenly heard a rustle underneath his pillow. He sat up and moved the pillow to find an envelope. He opened it carefully, almost hesitantly in case of a curse, but there seemed to be a normal letter inside it. He took the parchment and read:

_Harry, you need to trust me. You are in real danger. If and when you see a snake anywhere, in any form, don't touch it. Stay away from it._

It was the same handwriting as the other weird notes he'd received. He frowned and put the parchment back in the envelope, then stuffed the envelope back underneath the pillow without making any decisions about touching or not touching a snake, if he ever saw one.

'Harry, you ready?' Ron's voice called from the doorway.

'Yeah, I'm coming,' Harry shouted back and got up.

They were heading to the new event called Interhouse Play Night. It was arranged by the Rawenclaw and its only purpose was to bring Dene into everyone's reach every Friday and Saturday evening. The event was only for the 8th year students (with the exception of Dene who was a sixth year, allowed to go with a relative's supervision) because of the amount of alcohol (usually not that much) and possible (not often) adult topics of the night.

The events where held in the Room of Requirement which had a magical cupboard on one wall. It was especially asked for by the students since it served their games so wonderfully.

As they entered the Room of Requirement Harry realised there were probably all the 8th year students, including Neville, Seamus and Luna amongst others. Dene and Malfoy were sitting on the floor with the rest of the Slytherins, which weren't that many.

An hour later Harry felt relaxed, he was drinking his third Butterbeer and the game had went on smoothly and everyone had their chance to interrogate Dene about his food and music preferences.

'Harry and… Malfoy,' Seamus declared in a loud voice, he had just pulled out two names from the magical lottery hat.  
Malfoy groaned aloud, face contorted in misery. Dene said with a soft voice,

'Come on now, my _chaton. _I'd kiss Harry anytime.'

Draco glared at him, while Seamus asked, 'What does that mean again? My French is a bit rusty.'

Dene smiled that wonderful sun eclipsing smile, 'It's kitten. I love different languages, or should I say J'adore. I can speak many languages fluently.'

Everyone sighed in excitement as Hermione asked, 'Which languages do you speak?'

Dene answered, 'Russian, Icelandic, Japanese, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, French and some Spanish and Italian. Oh and bit of Gaelic as well.'

Malfoy glared at him and said, 'I didn't know you could speak Gaelic, say something in Gaelic. Even one word, and I'll give you my Firewhisky.'

It was obvious to Harry Malfoy thought Dene was exaggerating. Dene simply smiled and looked at Malfoy's Firewhisky saying, 'Uisge beatha.'

Malfoy's glare got deeper and Harry thought he heard growling as Malfoy handed over the bottle.

Luna asked, 'What does that mean?'

It was Malfoy who answered, 'It's whisky in Gaelic, the water of life.'

Harry blinked, since when had Malfoy known Gaelic?

As if reading Harry's thoughts Malfoy suddenly said, 'My father used to love Scotch.'

Dene was now brushing Malfoy's face with his fingers and said, 'I know he did, my –'

Malfoy shouted over his voice, 'Would you fucking stop that! Don't touch me!'

Dene's voice became softer, 'Come on, Draco…'

Malfoy kept pushing the boy's hands away when Ron interfered, 'Hey Dene, say something in Japanese, I've never heard Japanese.'

Dene turned to look at Ron and his face shined with excitement, 'Great idea, Ron. Watch this…'

He put his white hand in the pocket of his white robes and then pulled it out, turned back at Malfoy saying, 'Oyasuminasai, Draco-san.'

He blew some powder of his palm into Malfoy's face, who immediately closed his eyes, fell on the floor and appeared to be… sleeping.  
Dene began to laugh. Soon everyone else joined the laughter and Dene said, 'That was good night in Japanese.'

The laughter got louder but Harry wasn't even smiling. He looked at Malfoy, who looked unharmed and was breathing heavily, eyes closed in a natural looking sleep. It was almost difficult to watch Malfoy because Dene seemed to shine so bright, he made even people like Malfoy fade in the background somehow. Harry heard himself asking,

'Is he… alright?'

Dene looked at Harry and smiled, 'Of course he is, Harry, he's just sleeping. He wakes up if I do this…'

Dene laid his fingers on Draco's neck, on the pulse point. Draco jumped up and his face contorted with rage, 'I'll kill you, you white devil!'

He jumped at Dene, who fell under his weight. Malfoy was just about to punch him while staring into Dene's surprised, now pale grey eyes, when Seamus shouted,  
'I think it's time for Harry and Malfoy do their task! Gentlemen, ye know what to do…'

Malfoy lowered his fist and stood up from Dene's stomach, apparently enjoying the fact he got away from the boy at least for a while. Harry and Malfoy were both occupied with the dramatic scene to realize what they were expected to do as they walked to the magical cupboard. There were two doors in the dark green cupboard. Malfoy stood in front of the one which had a moon crescent on it, and Harry stood in front of the one which had a picture of a sun on it.

'Cupboard?' Luna called.

'Yes?' The Cupboard answered.

'Did you hear the task these boys are supposed to do?'

'I did. Please step inside on my count. Three… two…'

Dene's voice carried through the Cupboard's voice,  
'Draco, your hatred towards me is hidden lust! You know how love and hate walk hand in hand, they're like two sides of a coin!'

Something in the sentence made Harry glance at Malfoy who happened to glance at him at the same moment.

'One!' The Cupboard announced as the moon and the sun began to spin on the doors, then the doors opened and the boys stepped in. The doors closed behind them with a loud thud.

It was completely dark and silent. Harry stood still and reached for his wand out of habit. It was so silent he was certain Malfoy wasn't moving either. The darkness lasted for a couple of minutes or so before a light appeared in the ceiling.

'Good evening, boys,' Came the Cupboards voice.  
Harry looked at the light, which was star shaped. Another star light lit up on the ceiling, and then a third one, but not more star light than three.

Startled Harry jumped further away from Malfoy, and Malfoy mimicked the action, they hadn't realised how close they'd been standing until now that the stars lit the room with an eerie, faint, white light.  
Harry hit the nearby wall when he jumped and he quickly scanned the room, taking in the small place. He was still standing less than two meters away from Malfoy. The cupboard was like a really short and narrow corridor and they were standing as far away from each other as they could when Malfoy said,

'Put your wand down.'

Harry took a look at his own hand, he hadn't realised he was actually pointing it at Malfoy, and he did put it back in his pocket before asking,

'Do you want to do the task?'

Malfoy looked at him, bewildered, 'Of course not. Why, do you?'

Harry shook his head and said, 'I think it's unbelievable they actually put all the names in the same hat. I don't think it's fair to force two people of the same sex to… kiss.'

Malfoy snorted, 'Well it wouldn't have happened if your lot hadn't been drooling after that… demon.'

Harry had to smile at Malfoy's despair, 'Are you jealous of him?'

'Jealous of what?' Malfoy spat clearly very irritated.

'Maybe you don't want him touching and flirting with anyone else…' Harry lifted his eyebrows a bit, he simply had to take advantage of the situation, it served Malfoy right.

Malfoy narrowed his eyes and took a step forward and then another, coming closer to Harry.  
Then his lips twisted into an evil cold smile, 'You're the one who's been weak in the knees every time you see him.'

Harry wanted to deny that but it was useless. He had been staring and drooling, just like the rest of the school. Malfoy stopped suddenly, he was quite close anyway,

'You're not even denying it. You think he's sex on the legs, just like everyone else does. Merlin, you're weak, Potter. Letting your cock decide –'

'Shut the hell up!' Anger flared inside Harry and before he even knew it, he had jumped after Malfoy and it was like a repetition of the scenery before they'd entered the cupboard. Malfoy on the floor, Harry sitting on his stomach, fist raised.

'Boys! Stop that!' The Cupboard said. Harry looked up at the ceiling and asked, 'Can you see us?'

Malfoy managed to push Harry down from his stomach and was staring at the ceiling as well.

'No, but I can hear you. And I do have this special sense which lets me know when you've completed the task you were given. Please, do stop fighting.'

Malfoy answered, 'You would be well advised to open the doors, since we are not going to complete the task at all.'

The Cupboard sighed, 'I'm sorry. It is my duty to keep you here until you've done the task. Maybe next time you can talk yourselves out of the task before stepping in.'

Malfoy lifted his sleeves a bit and suddenly Harry jumped up from the floor and asked, 'What if we try to kill each other? What if we start hexing each other?'

The Cupboard answered, 'I'm afraid you cannot use any magic inside this cupboard. However there are certain things I can provide you with. Food I do not have. And I cannot open the doors if you have not completed the task, even if one of you tries to kill the other.'

Harry looked at Malfoy who returned the gaze and backed up until his back was against the wall.

They stared at each other for a moment, both thinking about the possibilities of the situation.

Then Malfoy suddenly asked, 'What about magical objects, do they work in here?'

The Cupboard simply said, 'No.'

Harry asked Malfoy, 'How about we shout to the others to let us out?'

Malfoy snorted, 'You know how much they enjoy the situation. The fact that you and I are stuck in here while Dene is all theirs for the time being. They're probably having an orgy already.'

Harry swallowed, 'What? Oh God, tell me that was joke, right?'

Malfoy's lips curved upwards, 'I knew you'd be jealous of him.'

Suddenly the anger was back and Harry jumped at Malfoy, who this time seemed to be prepared and started fighting back.  
Soon they were rolling on the narrow floor, growling and trying to rip at each other's hair, and land their fists anywhere, even trying to knee each other's groins.  
Finally Harry had managed to pin Malfoy down on the floor. By now they were both panting and sweaty.  
Malfoy muttered between hasty breaths, 'You can't smash my face in, Potter. Since you can't use any healing spells here you might accidentally kill me in the process.'

Harry simply panted, absorbing the message, and Malfoy went on, 'Is that what you want to do? Kill me?'

Harry was too exhausted to speak so he shook his head and then finally managed to say, 'No. We should… we should make a truce while were locked up in here.'

Malfoy had stopped struggling underneath Harry, who let his grip on the Slytherin's arms loosen a bit.

Malfoy was staring Harry in the eyes intently, Harry stared right back before asking, 'What?'

Malfoy's lips curved into a slight smile and suddenly Harry felt like kissing him but didn't, instead he asked again, 'What?'

Malfoy reached his arm and wrapped it around Harry's neck before muttering,  
'I'm flattered, Potter, to notice someone still thinks I'm hot, even though you probably think I look like him.'

'What?' This time Harry's voice sounded high pitched just as he realised he was hard and had during the fight somehow landed between Malfoy's thighs.  
_Oh my God_, he thought, _Oh God, oh God, oh God… _

He got up and turned his back at Malfoy knowing it was useless, the harm had been done already. Harry was certain Malfoy would remind him of this moment as long as both of them lived.  
Which of course wouldn't probably be a long time anyway if they continued fighting the same way they had until now.

Harry closed his eyes and let his head drop against the wooden wall in front of him.  
He couldn't remember ever being this humiliated before.  
He wasn't turned on because of…. Malfoy. It was… there was some other reason surely.  
Maybe Malfoy was right and it was because Malfoy looked a lot like Dene, and Dene was… well, he was hot; no-one could deny that.

Dene's hotness didn't come just from the beautiful face with the same aristocratic chin and nose which Malfoy had, no, it was the way he talked, the tone of his voice, the way he touched people and walked elegantly, so confident of himself – a lot the same way Malfoy had once done, long before the war and all that…

Malfoy didn't give Harry any retorts, which was a total surprise. They were both quiet for a long time before Malfoy said, 'Cupboard?'

'Yes?' Came the Cupboards female like voice.

'Can you turn up the heat? I'm cold.' Malfoy whined, and Harry wanted to snort but stayed quiet and still, trying to make Malfoy forget his existence.

'I'm afraid that's not possible. Sorry.' The Cupboard answered. Malfoy whined some more and asked,

'You said you could give us something, what was that about?'

The Cupboard's voice was calm, 'I can provide you with toilet facilities should you need them during your stay. I can also turn up the light. Not much else. Although there is one thing…'

'What's that?' Malfoy's voice held a hidden excitement.

'Well… I do have a bottle of Firewhisky someone forgot here once. But to give that to anyone, I would need a favour in return.'

There was only a small pause before Malfoy asked, 'What kind of a favour?'

'I have a twin. Another Cupboard. She lives in the Room of Requirement too, but to meet her you would have to ask the room to give her in particular, otherwise she won't appear. I do have a message to her. That's all.'

Malfoy didn't answer and Harry took a deep breath. After a moment of silence Malfoy asked,

'Potter, fancy Firewhisky? We could get drunk, and then deal with the kiss and if we got lucky we wouldn't remember it tomorrow.'

Harry thought about it for a moment but the embarrassment of the hard-on came back. He wouldn't take the risk of drinking and then kissing Malfoy, not a chance.

'No.' He answered.

The silence settled on them again. Harry was wondering how much time they'd spend there.

He asked, 'Cupboard, do you know what time it is?'

'I'm afraid not. I cannot read the time at all. As I said earlier, even during the tasks I just get the feeling of 'it's done' when it's done.'

Great, Harry thought, they might end up spending the whole night here in case their friends were to leave them here. They wouldn't do such thing, or would they?

He wanted to shout at the people outside but wondered why he couldn't hear any noises from the room so he asked,  
'Is this cupboard soundproof? If I shout, can someone from the other room hear me?'

The Cupboard's voice was the same calm tone as before, 'I am completely soundproof."

'You don't think they would leave us here?' Malfoy asked.

'I don't know.' Harry answered. He wanted to say 'of course not' but he could vaguely remember how much Hermione in particular had complained about the still ongoing animosity between the Slytherin and himself. Maybe their classmates thought it was time for them to learn a lesson on the matter. Maybe they imagined Harry and Malfoy would finally be able to deal with the past and start from a new beginning if they were to stay here long enough.

5 minutes of kissing. If he kissed Malfoy for 5 minutes he could get out of here and go to his nice, warm bed and forget all this ever happened.

It was impossible. He would surely become hard again, if he had become that while just fighting with him. And he didn't even fancy Malfoy! Why was his body not co-operating with him at all, it seemed like his body had developed a will of its own this autumn.

'Potter, I'm hungry, cold, bored and this place makes me nervous. I want out of here. Let's just do it. Or get the whisky and then do it. I definitely don't want to spend the whole night in here.'

'No! I can't do it.' Harry shouted. He squeezed his eyes close even tighter and took a frustrated breath.

'Fine! Then I'll go to sleep! Cupboard, you wouldn't have any blankets, would you?'

'I'm afraid not. Zinnia might've had some. The other cupboard I mean. She has more facilities than I do. I think some of the students might have been staying with her for weeks sometimes.'

Harry groaned. Why didn't the who ever had originally come up with the idea of a room with a cupboard just wished for the other cupboard instead? Of course they might've not known about it since Harry had no knowledge of this cupboard's existence either, at least not before this evening.

Harry heard rustling, Malfoy was moving but Harry didn't want to turn to look at him.

'Cupboard, could you turn off the lights so I can sleep?' Malfoy ordered.

'Certainly,' said the Cupboards everlasting calm voice and one star at a time went off leaving Harry in a complete darkness.


	4. Cupboard hostages

_**Chapter 4 – Cupboard hostages bending laws of time**_

When Harry finally started dozing off against the wall he decided to lie down, but in the complete darkness it was impossible to find an empty spot on the floor. Especially when he knew Malfoy was currently occupying most of the space on the floor. Malfoy wasn't sleeping though; at least Harry didn't believe he was since there was no deep breathing or any other possible indication of a sleeping boy.

He stood completely still, thinking whether he should actually talk to him or whether he should try to find a place for himself with a possible risk of touching Malfoy. He went for the latter and reached his foot out, slid it along the floor carefully until he met an obstacle. A shoe presumably.

He pulled his foot back and took a step at the direction he thought was empty, but pulled his leg back quickly when there was an obstacle again,

'Ow! Stop whatever you are doing and lie down!' Malfoy sounded irritated.

'Well I didn't know where you were! I can't see you, you know!' Harry was just as irritated.

'You do now, so lie down and let me get some sleep, for Merlin's sake! It's probably morning already!'

Harry blinked in the complete darkness, trying to figure out where Malfoy was exactly but it was very difficult when there were no kinds of landmarks. His imagination kept changing the size and the shape of the room until he had no idea where he had been in the first place!

He groaned and then yelled in frustration, 'Fuck you, Malfoy! I can't see anything! I'm going to sit down now and if I sit on your face then it's your own fault!'

Malfoy snorted and that gave Harry an indication he wasn't going to sit on the boy's face as he slowly got on his knees, brushing Malfoy's leg only a little and then deciding to touch Malfoy anyway. He put his hand on Malfoy's leg and used it like a support so he could with difficulty manage to get himself into the narrow space between Malfoy and the wall next to him.

He thought they were lucky the cupboard was big enough to lie down, and better yet, the two of them were touching each other's sides only a little. If Harry would turn to his right side and leaned on the wall with all of his weight, he might just maybe avoid touching Malfoy at all. So he went for it but it wasn't as easy as he thought and he accidentally kicked Malfoy, possibly on the face, in the process,

'Ow, Potter! You're bruising me! What the hell are you doing, stop kicking me!'

'I'm trying to get into a sleeping position in which I don't have to touch you at all, you git, so shut the hell up already!'

'No, Potter! You are not putting your legs near my face!' Malfoy shouted and Harry answered, 'What the hell are you complaining about? You've had your shoe in my face too, and it wasn't a delicate, feather like touch as far as I remember!'

Suddenly Malfoy touched Harry's legs, Harry tensed and asked, 'What are you doing now?'

He heard rustling, then Malfoy's hands moved a bit before one hand suddenly landed on his left shoulder and Harry made a surprised noise.

'I'm making sure you won't kick me in my face.'  
Malfoy's voice was suddenly very close and finally there was a loud sigh very near Harry's left ear after Malfoy had settled himself next to Harry.

Harry closed his eyes, tried to forget Malfoy's existence and concentrated on falling asleep. It took him forever and he knew it took the blond Slytherin at least as long as him to fall asleep too.

He dreamed a lot, constant short sceneries changing and swirling in to others. In some of them there was Malfoy, where in others there was Dene, and in some there were both, but twisted somehow. In some of them they looked completely identical and Harry wasn't certain who was who. First he was talking with Dene and suddenly the boy's voice changed and he was Malfoy. Then he was kissing with Malfoy who suddenly turned into Dene. Harry's emotions were twisting and turning until finally it was Malfoy again, who was smiling Dene's warm smile. It was then Harry woke up with a start.

It was pitch-black and he took a deep breath, remembering where he was. He tried to remember what his exact feelings were towards Malfoy or Dene but wasn't certain anymore.

'Potter?' Malfoy's voice was a faint whisper.

'What?' He whispered back although he had no idea why they were whispering.

'I didn't eat dinner and since we have no idea what time it is, it's possible were going to miss breakfast. I'm so hungry I'll eat you without even chewing unless we get out of here right now.'

Harry was silent for a minute before whispering, 'What do you suggest then?'

Malfoy moved a bit and sighed before his hand touched Harry's back and then ran up to Harry's left shoulder. Harry tensed under the soft touch but was glad he had managed to sleep facing the wall and apparently he had not been touching Malfoy at all during the night.

'Turn around,' Malfoy's whisper ordered him but he asked, 'Why?'

'I told you, I'll eat you if I can't get out of here right now so turn around. I'll kiss you and then we're free and we can happily hate each other for the rest of our lives, as far as I care.'

Harry sighed. He still felt the remains of the dreams echoing in his head, blurring the reality somewhat. Then he turned slowly on his back and sensed Malfoy coming closer until the hand moved from his shoulder up to his neck. Malfoy's fingers were touching surprisingly softly, almost gently. Then there was another hand as well, which stroked Harry's neck before climbing up to Harry's chin and lips.

Even though Harry couldn't see anything, his eyes were still wide in shock as he tried to get used to the thumb on his lips. Malfoy's presumably right hand stroked Harry's neck and the Slytherin whispered, 'You're so tense.'  
He didn't trust Malfoy enough to relax and was merely waiting for the boy's lips in silent, controlled but utter panic.

'I can't kiss you if you're that tense. I know you hate me but don't hit or bite me, okay?'

Harry took a deep breath and tried to relax but it was extremely difficult, his heart was kicking like it wanted to escape his ribcage and run away from the situation as much as Harry's mind did.  
_I'm going insane, I can't take this, why does my life have to be this difficult, complicated and strange even now the war's over. Everything was supposed to be calm and ordinary…_

'I can't relax… I don't trust you… just do it.' He whispered against the soft thumb which was still stroking his lips and disturbing his speech.

Malfoy's upper body was leaning into him; Harry suspected it must be difficult to find a good position for kissing while you don't want to touch the other when it's not absolutely necessary. The next whisper was so close Harry could feel the air on his lips, 'Fine. You should try to relax though since it's going to last for five minutes and being as tense as a bow string for five minutes can make you snap.'

Malfoy was clearly stalling; Harry was beginning to get impatient, 'Just do –'

Of course Malfoy would cut off his sentence by landing his lips on Harry's, just to spite him. The rest of the sentence turned into a smothered, surprised mumble. Malfoy had kissed him with his mouth open, and not – as Harry had thought it would go – lips tightly closed against Harry's just as tightly closed lips in avoidance of any unnecessary contact.

No, Malfoy had attacked him so that Harry's lips were open too and Malfoy's mouth was soft but fierce, clearly determined not to let Harry or anything else disturb the kiss so that it wouldn't break before the five minutes would be safely passed.

Malfoy's hand was still on Harry's neck but it didn't feel bad at all although now the touch was more firm, as if keeping Harry's head in place, preventing him from escaping or breaking the kiss. Harry tried to relax, realising it would indeed be much easier to just give in, and not fight back in anyway. Malfoy was smothering him, but he managed to relax completely, letting Malfoy do whatever he thought was necessary and learned quite fast how to breathe through his nose.

It came uninvited, the feeling of '_this is not so bad'_ as he realised he was kissing Malfoy back.  
Now that he felt more relaxed, his mouth was adapting to Malfoy's lips and their movements and it wasn't difficult at all.  
He tried to slow down Malfoy's movements (_not so hard, calm down_) and ended up reaching his hand in Malfoy's hair and neck. The moment Malfoy relaxed too was as clear as daylight; he let out a deep breath through his nose and let his upper body press against Harry's.

Suddenly Harry felt thankful. Thankful for Malfoy that he had made this happen. Harry would've never had the courage to coax Malfoy into kissing him. But then again, maybe Harry just wasn't as hungry as Malfoy had been.  
Harry slowed their movements down even more, so that their lips were barely moving, and both could breathe calmly.  
It changed from fierce panic into calm acceptance, from hatred into a peaceful, trusting submission.

He realised with a shock that Malfoy was actually listening to him, adapting into whatever direction Harry wanted to turn the kiss into. _Yes,_ Harry thought, _this feels so much better now_…

He stroked Malfoy's neck gently and surrendered completely, letting the unfamiliar feelings come.  
He tasted Malfoy's mouth, faint, familiar taste of Firewhisky.  
He let his tongue brush against Malfoy's, maybe to say it was okay, maybe even suggest it might be nice to – Malfoy sucked his tongue as an answer and before Harry knew he was doing so, he moaned.

It only made Malfoy suck harder before twining his tongue with Harry's, as if finding out if one could really do that, apparently one could.  
Harry swallowed, the taste of Firewhisky ran down his throat and he sucked Malfoy's tongue because that felt so good. Everything was so wet and warm, and Harry felt all peaceful and satisfied.  
Until he realised he was hard again!  
But he couldn't panic; he accepted it too, surrendered to the fact that he enjoyed kissing Draco Malfoy so much he was hard – it was okay. Everything was okay.

Malfoy slowed the kiss down; Harry hadn't noticed when it had become desperate and deep.  
It was so soft and gentle, it made Harry moan again.

Then Malfoy's thumb on his neck gave a soft but quick stroke and the boy started to gently pull away. Harry didn't want that, he didn't let the hold of Malfoy's neck go but pulled the boy back, deeper.  
Malfoy made a sound and then lifted his head a bit and spoke while still brushing Harry's lips, so it was kind of kissing although he was trying to talk, 'Did you… count?'

Harry licked Malfoy's lips and kept coaxing the boy back into the kiss, but asked, 'What?'  
Malfoy's lips were all swollen and soft, as was his whispers, 'The… minutes.'  
Harry moaned as Malfoy's lips were drowning him into another small kiss before pulling back a little, Malfoy whispered, 'Why aren't the doors… open?'  
Harry's thumb was on Malfoy's cheek now, stroking it gently as he whispered back, 'No idea. Did you count?'  
Malfoy's lips were still so close, Harry had to tilt his head back a little to reach them.  
Malfoy gave in for a moment and let Harry suck and lick his lips before he whispered,  
'I tried but... no. Don't you think it was five minutes?'

Harry sucked Malfoy's lower lip gently before saying, 'I have no idea, could've been ten, as far as I know.'  
Malfoy sighed but kissed Harry again and talked into his lips, 'Maybe we should do it again and this time count carefully.'  
Harry made an agreeing sound which sounded a lot like a moan. Malfoy whispered,

'My back aches.'  
'Oh?' Harry was already trying to pull the boy into a kiss but Malfoy didn't let himself get pulled just yet, 'Yeah, it hurts a lot. We need to change our positions.'  
Harry let his fingers run in Draco's hair and wondered how it was possible a boy had such a soft hair, 'Uh - alright, how do you want us?'

Malfoy didn't move and Harry knew he was hesitating whatever he was about to say, so Harry kept stroking his hair and neck with both hands. _God, have I ever felt this good in my life? No, I haven't, definitely not.  
_'Can we lie down? One of us on… top.'  
Harry's thumb stopped the stroking suddenly and Harry opened his eyes, which he had kept closed for what felt like an hour. It didn't make a difference; the darkness was still there as devouring as before. Harry swallowed, trying not to panic.

He was hard. He was so hard; it would be so obvious to Malfoy. What was he supposed to say now? He would find out, unless Harry said it aloud first as a warning.  
But no, you can't say things like that, can you?  
'I… I'd like that… except…' He couldn't end the sentence.  
The next sentence wasn't a whisper and Harry heard a clear tone of worry, 'Except what?'

He stroked Malfoy's neck once more, fearing it might be the last time ever,  
'Except I have a problem.'  
'Yeah? Just say it.' Now there was even irritation mixed in the worry.

'I…' He hesitated.  
'Just say it already. If you don't want that, it's okay. I can take the next five minutes when I know I can go to Pomfrey after that and she'll fix my back and give some painkilling potions.'

Harry realised the worry had actually been a fear of rejection and that made his mouth work,  
'I want it. But I'm hard.'

There was only a small moment of silence before Malfoy asked,

'So?'  
'So…' He didn't know what to say.  
'Well I'm not going to do anything about it, since I'm here to kiss not to wank anyone but – '  
'What? NO!' Harry cut him off the sentence,  
'No! I don't want you to do anything about it! I just… I thought you should know.'

Malfoy sighed, 'What's the problem then?'

'Well that is the problem! I'm hard!' Harry's voice was suddenly loud. God, he was so embarrassed.  
'That's not a problem, Potter! Where I come from it's considered normal if you're snogging with someone. I'd be hard too if I ever got hard these days.'

'What?' Harry was confused. Why wasn't it a problem he was hard?

Malfoy was already moving and clearly planning on being the top, landing between Harry's thighs which he automatically spread even while being confused. Malfoy muttered,

'I really don't want to talk about it. I don't get hard, simple as that. Oh, you on the other hand…'  
Malfoy made a small sound, which sounded completely unfamiliar to Harry and made his stomach muscles clench with a nice feeling he couldn't name.

He didn't have time to say anything as Malfoy's fingers were suddenly back on his neck and lips before Malfoy's voice was so very close to his lips,  
'Now, where were we? And this time, let's both count and we won't stop before we've counted to seven minutes, just to be sure, okay?'

'Uh-huh' Harry managed to mutter, already too occupied with the feeling of Malfoy's body brushing against his.

The kiss went back on. This time it started calmly, as both of them tried to relax again, get back into the feeling of it, and count inside their heads at the same time.  
Harry took a deep breath through his nose and tried to forget his hard-on, which was the most difficult part it seemed.

Malfoy was pressing against him so nicely, his weight felt right and it occurred to Harry his feelings towards Malfoy were possibly changing for forever right now.  
How could he ever hate the git after this, it would be impossible.

He had accepted his sexual orientation during the summer but he had never had a boy on top of him, not like this at least.  
He could vaguely remember some of the times he'd been fighting with Malfoy so that they had ended up in pretty much the same position but… it had been in anger, and accidental, not something they had agreed on doing. It was unbelievable how much Harry enjoyed doing this right now.

One minute gone, he counted, and the next one began, 1, 2, 3...  
_Yes, just like that_, Harry thought when Malfoy was sucking his tongue once more.  
This type of communication seemed to work between just fine, Harry wondered, and to express his satisfaction of the fact he wrapped both hands in Malfoy's hair and clenched his fingers there firmly but not enough to cause the blond any pain.  
Malfoy moaned.  
_Oh… that's nice, I like that.  
_The moan had some side-effects on Harry's body though. It made his body press against Malfoy's although he had been trying to refrain from doing so.

_Did I just forget to count, did I reach to two already? 1,2,3…  
_  
He sucked Malfoy's tongue and noticed how the kiss had become more commanding. They were both taking deep, quick breaths through their noses, which seemed to be touching each other occasionally and even that didn't bother Harry at all.  
Harry's heart seemed to be beating faster than ever before.  
Malfoy moved against him, just once, creating more pressure along with the rubbing movement, and that wasn't a good thing - _Oh God, please don't do this to me_, he thought and all but moaned.

His fingers were clutching at Malfoy's hair more greedily. His body seemed to be living a life of its own, since he was wrapping his legs around Malfoy to get more pressure, to get closer, like it wasn't enough already.  
_  
I lost the count again_, he noticed, _fuck, was this the third or fifth or what? Shit, 1,2,3…_

Malfoy indeed didn't seem to be bothered by Harry's hard-on since he kept pushing against him once in a while. It made Harry moan, although he was still pleading inside his head for that to stop.  
One more push and Harry forgot to breath, he was pushing against Malfoy and moaning without being able to stop_.  
Please God, don't make me come, don't make me come…  
_Malfoy moaned as well, suddenly his hand was travelling down Harry's chest, then waist and landed on Harry's thigh.

It stayed there only for a while before moving to Harry's ass and when the Slytherin's hand gave a firm squeeze, Harry's whole body tensed and arched against him.  
He gave a high-pitched moan in the back of his throat, which sounded almost like _No_ or _Please_ and he couldn't breathe any longer. Another squeeze along with the right thrusting movement of Malfoy's body made Harry tremble uncontrollably, he felt like his loins were on fire as he came.

Malfoy didn't stop, he squeezed again, softer this time and thrust slowly against Harry who couldn't help but tremble and let the waves of his orgasm ride over him.

He could finally breathe again, but only pant short breaths through nose.  
Then he let his body relax, giving Malfoy's lower body a silent permission to leave the furious embrace his legs had kept him in. He slowly opened his fists which had been clenching Malfoy's hair pretty hard.  
Malfoy did something unexpected and broke the kiss, just a bit, and muttered with a soft voice,  
'I think we reached seven, what do you think?'

Harry's brain felt numb, he had no idea what Malfoy was talking about but answered, 'Yeah.'

Malfoy stayed right there though, only pulling his hand away from Harry's ass. Harry kept breathing against the soft and swollen lips before Malfoy raised his head and asked,

'Cupboard?'

'Yes?'

'Why aren't the doors open?'

"They are open."

A small silence before Malfoy said,

'Doesn't look like they're open to me.'

'They are open.'

'When did you open them?'

'When you had done the task.'

'When was that?'

'I don't know, I can't tell time. I just knew when you had done the given task.'

Malfoy groaned a little and then talked right into Harry's lips,  
'Seems like we might've forced ourselves into the last seven minutes in vain.'

Harry still couldn't speak, his thoughts were too hazy, he only managed to make a soft, 'Oh'

As Malfoy began to get up there was suddenly a sound of metal, when something dropped on the floor. Malfoy froze, Harry could feel it, and the way Malfoy tensed made Harry a little more aware of whom he was with.  
Malfoy must've dropped something; Harry thought and heard Malfoy's hand on the floor as he began to search for the fallen object.  
'What's that?' Harry asked.  
Malfoy's voice was suddenly very cold, 'Nothing.'  
He was moving a little on top of Harry as he tried to sweep the floor with his hands in order to find it.

'We could get the light on, you know,' Harry commented, trying to sound helpful.  
'NO!' The voice was tense_.  
Oh, I see, we're back in the same ground as we've always been_, Harry thought and felt disappointed.  
Something in Malfoy's tense voice suddenly made Harry spread his arm on the floor as he too began to search for the metallic object.  
'No, don't!' Malfoy snapped as his fingers met Harry's on the floor and he tried to pull Harry's hand away from the wooden surface but there it was – it was right there and Harry caught it!  
He squeezed it inside his fist, it was small.

'I have it. What is this?' Harry asked, his voice was beginning to sound irritated as well.

'Give it to me, Potter. Now!' Malfoy was anxious and had searched Harry's hand and was trying to rip the fist open with his fingers.

'I'll give it to you! Just tell me what it is first,' Harry said, trying to pull his fist free from the Slytherin's grip.

'It's my ring, now give it back.' Malfoy was furiously pulling at Harry's fingers and it hurt.

Harry said, 'Cupboard, can you put all the lights on, please?'

'Certainly,' The ceiling burst into light as not three, but a dozen little stars were lit.

Harry squinted at the sudden brightness and tore his hand away from Malfoy's fingers and opened his hand.  
There was the Slytherin ring, a snake, on Harry's palm.  
Harry stared at the snake as Malfoy grabbed it and put it inside his pocket.

Malfoy stood up and backed to the door, glaring at Harry.

Harry rose quickly on his feet, which felt numb and weak. He stared at Malfoy in bewilderment.

'Why do you look so surprised, Potter? Certain seven minutes in the darkness made you forget who you were with?'

Malfoy's face was pure coldness. Harry was so confused he didn't know what to say, 'No, I…'

Malfoy turned around and pushed one of the cupboard's doors open and disappeared into the Room of Requirement.

Harry wanted to go after him but glanced at his lap first, the trousers were a bit damp in the groin. Because of the dark colour of the trousers it was barely noticeable and Harry quickly made his decision and walked out of the other door, but not the same one from which Malfoy had exited.

He froze. The room was full of chatter and noise, all the 8th year student were sitting on the floor, drinking Firewhisky or Butterbeer. Seamus was currently pulling a name from the magical lottery hat. Then Harry realised Malfoy was standing right beside him, apparently frozen from the shock as well.  
He looked at Malfoy mouth open and Malfoy looked just as confused.

Then Seamus noticed them and said happily, 'Well that was fast, I'm proud you Harry.'

He winked at Harry and continued pulling the names from the hat, 'Ron and… oh, Dene.'

Ron and Dene both stood up, while Malfoy and Harry numbly moved out of the way as the boys came to a halt in front of the cupboard's doors.  
Ron gave Harry a tight smile and whispered, 'I didn't think you could ever do it, mate. Must've been awful!'

Harry was still so confused he couldn't answer anything.  
Dene was smiling at Harry, that warm, tempting, mischievous smile and Harry blushed.

The Cupboard started to count the numbers before the sun and moon began to spin and the boys entered the cupboard.  
Harry and Malfoy looked at each other once more and both of them frowned.  
Then Harry asked Seamus with a loud voice, 'Hey Seamus, how long were we inside that cupboard?'

Seamus smiled, looked at both of them in turn and answered, 'Five minutes.'

Harry looked at Malfoy again, the Slytherin had blanched.

The dampness inside his trousers made him finally say, 'Well, I think I'll call it a night. Good night everyone.'

Then he walked calmly to the door and left the room. He walked briskly up to the Gryffindor tower and took a quick shower before going to bed.

The time had stopped inside the cupboard, there was no other explanation.  
He had just spent a whole night with Malfoy and in reality they had only been away the time the task had required. Five minutes in reality - a whole night for them.

Finally he fell asleep, still tasting Malfoy's Firewhisky in his mouth. He dreamed of Malfoy too.


	5. The Chaos begins to grow

Chapter 5 _**The Chaos begins to grow**_

It all started during that night, probably as soon as the day had turned from Saturday to Sunday. Everything was slowly turning into a full chaos. Maybe he had gone crazy – maybe it had been too much of a shock to spend a night with Malfoy in the Cupboard. Later that same night when he hadn't fallen asleep yet but was deep in his thoughts about Malfoy, Ron had entered the dormitory and stomped to Harry's bed, which was surrounded by the curtains, hiding the dark haired boy from sight.

'Harry, you awake?' Ron's voice was excited and loud. The tone of the voice made Harry answer, 'Yeah, I'm still up.'

Ron pulled the curtain open enough to look at Harry, who turned to look at his now blurry looking Gryffindor friend.

'Harry, I'm gay!' Ron declared.

Harry had no idea whether the rest of the Gryffindor boys were in the room or not, since he had been too occupied with thinking and not listening to any sounds coming from the room before this.

'What?' Harry asked and found himself grinning.

'I kissed him, in the Cupboard.' Ron said, his voice shaky.

'Who did you kiss?' Harry frowned and smiled.

'Him. Dene. It was amazing. I'm definitely gay, Harry. I'm gay!' Ron said, apparently shaking from the excitement. Harry was quiet for a moment before asking,

'What about… Hermione?'

'I'll tell her tomorrow. She'll understand. It's not something I can change, you know. I think I might love him.'

Harry blinked in confusion. He had never, not even once, thought Ron would be gay. That didn't make any sense. He'd been going out with Hermione for a while now, although this autumn it had been a bit on-off since Hermione's constant headaches made her distant.

'Ron, are you sure about this?' Harry asked with a concerned voice.

'Yes, definitely. I can't remember the last time I was ever this certain about anything. Harry, he's amazing, and his lips, oh, I could drown in his mouth…'

Harry's eyebrows shot up and he muttered, 'Right. Well… maybe you should go to bed now and see how you feel about him tomorrow.'

Ron nodded eagerly, 'Yes, I should go to bed since I have a lot of planning to do. I'm going to ask him out.'

Then Ron already pulled the curtain back shut without waiting for Harry's answer, and stomped away. Harry barely managed to shout after him, 'Good night, Ron!'

For some reason Harry was smiling after that. He was pretty sure there was a love potion or something else suspicious going on and Ron would probably be back to normal before the morning.

He returned to his thoughts about Malfoy, he couldn't wash away the feeling of Malfoy's body pressed up against his. He missed that. The feeling when he had been all relaxed and giving into the feeling of arousal, although it was Malfoy – who, in fact, had been acting encouragingly, not sneering or mocking him in any way. Not at that time at least. Like it had been a mutual agreement that whatever happened that moment, or in the Cupboard during that night, would be beyond the topics of which you could make fun of.  
That's how he felt like right now.  
Like it had been something sacred and if there was anything about it he could ever use against Malfoy, he wouldn't dream of doing that.

With that in mind he turned to his left side and finally fell asleep.

The next morning he blinked in confusion when he woke up. He knew something had changed during the night. Then he remembered the night before; Malfoy, the Cupboard, and Ron declaring his orientation.  
Harry smiled at that thought and suddenly realised he was holding a snitch.

He didn't need glasses to know what he was squeezing inside his fist. He looked at it. It was the same snitch Dumbledore had left him, the one which still said _I open at the close _every time Harry kissed it.

'What are you doing here?' Harry muttered to the snitch, bringing it closer to his eyes to make sure it indeed was his snitch. He kissed it. Yes, it was his; there was no doubt about it.  
He didn't remember taking the snitch to bed – he had no recollection of when he had seen this snitch the last time, usually it was hidden on the bottom of his trunk.

'That's strange.' He muttered to himself, got up and put the snitch where it belonged to.

He didn't have the time to start thinking about it because he heard someone moaning.  
It sounded like someone was in pain. It was coming from the bathroom.  
Harry was suddenly full of adrenaline and grabbed his wand before taking slow steps towards the bathroom. It sounded a bit like Ron's voice so he called out,

'Ron?'

The moaning got louder and Harry quickened his steps,

'Ron, is that you?'

He reached the bathroom and peered in, he could see Ron's feet from a cubicle.

'Ron?'

He took careful steps closer until he was right behind Ron, who was on his knees in front of the toilet, leaning his head on his hand for support.

'What's wrong?' Harry asked.

'I have no idea, I'm feeling awful.' Ron said and retched before being sick.

'We should get you to Pomfrey,' Harry said bewildered.  
'Come on!' He ordered and tried to grab Ron's arm.

An hour later Ron was in the hospital wing and Harry had taken a shower and was on his way to breakfast when he noticed the Gryffindor table was unusually empty.

'Seamus, where is everyone?' He asked the Irish boy, who shrugged,

'No idea.'

Harry sat next to him and started eating. Hermione was probably still in bed with a headache, Ron in the hospital, and it was possible everyone else was outside if it wasn't raining.

'Any plans for today?' Seamus asked with his strong Irish accent.

Harry shook his head, 'No, not really. I should write an essay which was due last Friday.'

Seamus grinned, 'Too much on your mind, ay?'

Harry fought back blushing although he had no idea what Seamus was referring to.

'I guess so,' he answered and on their own accord his eyes shot to the Slytherin table, where Malfoy was staring at his plate with a frown and Dene was shining like a manic star right next to him.  
Malfoy clearly tried to hide a yawn and Harry noticed he wasn't eating. _That's strange; he was so hungry last night…_

Dene caught his eye and smiled a warm smile, then mouthed 'Hi' in which Harry managed to mouth back 'Hi.'  
Dene kept watching him and Harry's blood started to boil all over again.

Dene's expression was somehow mischievous and it made Harry's brain think of sex.  
_Sex on legs_, Malfoy had called him. That was true.  
The white haired boy winked at Harry, grinned and leaned on Malfoy's arm, and then he leaned even closer until his lips were against Malfoy's ear. Clearly he was whispering something to Malfoy.

It made Malfoy raise his eyes from the plate and meet Harry's gaze for a moment but the look was nonchalant and Harry suddenly felt cold.  
It looked almost like the previous night hadn't affected Malfoy in any way.  
So it had been just the task, Malfoy hadn't felt anything after all.

Harry felt disappointed although he hadn't expected anything else either.  
Malfoy's eyes were dark like storm clouds before his gaze dropped back to the table.  
Everything in him seemed tired and dull grey when Dene was near him.

Harry caught sight of Dene's tongue which was licking Mafloy's skin right under his ear.  
Harry's pulse quickened. _Oh God, what is he doing…?_

It stopped; Dene pulled away and started a conversation with someone Harry assumed was his classmate.

'He's gorgeous,' Seamus sighed next to Harry and Harry turned to look at him and asked,

'What are you doing today? I haven't been outside in ages. Would you like to go for a walk?'

Seamus reluctantly pulled his eyes from the Slytherin table and looked at Harry,

'Sure, why not.'

Finally the Sunday owls came and Harry received a note. He had completely forgotten the mysterious spy until now. The note said,

_I'll be writing a lot to you this week. Read carefully everything I say. I know something serious is going on._

Harry frowned and put the note in his pocket. The amount of the notes had been growing constantly and he had every note hidden in his trunk.

Ron stayed in the hospital wing the whole Sunday and Monday since Pomfrey had no idea what was wrong with him ('Possibly a food poisoning. I've never seen anything like this before'). Harry went to see him several times to tell him about everything that'd been going on.  
Ron kept asking a lot about Dene and Harry didn't know what to make of it.

'Neville asked me about that yellow shirt of yours,' Ron muttered on Monday evening.

'Which yellow shirt?' Harry asked.

'The new one you wore the day you were rummaging your trunk and bed looking for something and didn't bother telling me about it although I asked several times. I don't know why you bother being so secretive at times.'

This sounded completely unfamiliar to Harry.

'What are you talking about? What day was this? And what yellow shirt?'

Ron frowned, 'You know. Last week, the day you were rummaging and didn't answer any questions. Remember? When you wrote the note to me. The yellow shirt with the silver snake on the back.'

Harry frowned, completely confused and said, 'I don't recall a day like that. I don't recall ever wearing a yellow shirt with a snake on it. What did the note say?'

Ron was silent for a moment, then his mouth opened in confusion, 'What? No, it was you! You wrote a note to me which said something like you couldn't speak at the moment because someone had made a silencing charm on you and that you were in a hurry and it was nothing important and… yeah, something like that.'

Harry shook his head, 'I have no idea who it has been but it wasn't me, Ron.'

Ron looked shocked, 'You are joking, right Harry? It was written in your handwriting…'

Harry shook his head again, looking grave, 'It definitely wasn't me unless I've been under Imperius or sleepwalking.'

Ron didn't say anything and Harry muttered, 'I woke up with a snitch in my hand yesterday morning. I have no idea who put it there.'

They stared at each other for a moment. Both were too shocked to say anything.

'I need to check something,' Harry said suddenly and all but ran up to the Gryffindor tower.

He rummaged around his trunk and bed and couldn't find his invisibility cloak anywhere.

Finally he stood still and accepted the fact: _Someone has been under Polyjuice potion pretending to be me and has stolen my invisibility cloak._

He couldn't sleep that night, nor the following. He sat in his bed with Marauder's map and wand ready. Nothing happened during the nights though. He was really getting worried now. _What is going on around here?_

On Wednesday Harry ate breakfast in the Great Hall and looked around in the Gryffindor table.  
He asked Luna,

'Where's Neville?'

Luna shrugged, 'I guess he's writing poetry somewhere. He does that a lot these days.'

Harry accidentally dropped his piece of toast in his tea mug, 'Neville writes poetry?'

Luna nodded, 'Oh yes. They're quite good actually. Maybe you should read them sometime.'

Harry nodded, absentmindedly took a piece of toast and sipped his tea before noticing the previous toast floating on the surface.

His eyes were once again drawn to the Slytherin table. As if he could feel Harry's gaze, Dene turned his head and looked Harry in the eyes. The warm smile grew instantly and the boy nodded softly. _His hair looks so soft_. Harry nodded back and couldn't help but smile.

Luna sighed and Harry looked at her, she had her eyes half closed as she said, 'He looks like an angel.'

'Yes, he does,' Harry muttered and wondered if there was a single person in the whole school who didn't think the boy was… _so beautiful_.

'I'm going to Japan, you know,' Luna said suddenly.

'Oh really? When?' Harry asked.

'Tonight,' Luna answered.

Harry looked at her; she was still looking towards the Slytherin table.

'Tonight? How can you travel in the middle of the school term?' Harry asked.

'McGonagall said it's alright. I want to learn to speak Japanese,' Luna said and then stood up and said,  
'I should get back to packing, I haven't ever been to Japan so I don't really know what I should take with me. Take care, Harry, I'll teach you some Japanese when I get back.'

Harry quickly swallowed the toast in his mouth and asked, 'When are you coming back?'

'In a couple of weeks, depending on how it goes,' Luna gave him a small smile.

He smiled, 'Alright. Have a nice journey then and take care.'

Luna waved happily to Dene who waved just as happily back before she left the hall.

Then the owls came, and another note,

_I really need you to trust me, Harry. Should anyone ask you on a date this week or next weekend, DO NOT GO! Should anyone ask you out, do not go outside the castle. Remember to stay away from the snakes. _

Harry looked around to see if there was anyone looking but no, no-one was looking at him.

He looked at Malfoy. Things between him and Malfoy had clearly gone back to where they had been before The Cupboard Task. Malfoy seemed even more ignorant towards him than before, if anything.

He stood up and wandered the corridors for a while, thinking. Then he decided to go to McGonagall and was surprised when McGonagall appeared right behind him,

'Good morning, Mr. Potter. You want to come for a cup of tea?'

The headmistress smiled. Harry nodded and said, 'That would be nice, thank you.'

He followed her up the staircase and once more was sitting in that same room. Albus Dumbledore seemed to asleep in his painting. McGonagall made them tea and asked,

'How may I help you, Mr. Potter?'

'Well… there are plenty of things, really. I… I don't really know where to begin.'

'I'm in no hurry, take your time.' McGonagall looked free of stress and that calmed Harry's nerves somewhat.

'Madam, it seems to me someone has stolen my property and pretended to be me, possibly under Polyjuice potion.'

McGonagall put her tea cup on a silver tray and said, 'Oh. Do tell me all you know about it.'

'Well… one morning I woke up with a snitch on my hand, and I don't know how it got there. Then Ron told me I had been acting weird one day, wearing a yellow shirt with a snake on it. I don't have a yellow shirt and I realised someone must've been pretending to be me and that way gotten to our dormitory. So I searched everywhere for my invisibility cloak and it was gone. That's not all. I've been also receiving very weird notes filled with warnings about things. And now everyone has been starting to act strangely all of a sudden…'

McGonagall frowned, 'What do you mean when you say everyone has been acting strangely?'

Harry swallowed, 'Well Luna is travelling to Japan, Ron thinks he's gay, Neville has started writing poetry. And everyone thinks Dene is good looking, and I've heard at least a couple of people saying they're in love with him.'

MaGonagall sighed and looked worried for a moment before asking, 'Is there anything else?'

'I uhm… I've noticed Draco Malfoy isn't eating much, and he looks very tired, like he's under a lot of stress. I've also caught him walking around after curfew."

McGonagall smiled all of a sudden, 'What were you doing out of your bed after curfew?'

Harry looked at his hands and shook his head, 'I was… following him because I wanted to know what he's up to.'

'Well did you find out what he's doing?' McGonagall asked.

'Erm… no,' Harry admitted, feeling embarrassed.

McGonagall was silent for a while. She said, 'I think I've had enough of the animosity between you and Mr. Malfoy. Promise me you will not follow him anymore, and I'll have a word with him and keep an eye on him so he stays where he is supposed to during the nights. As for your other concerns; I think Ronald Weasley is allowed to question his sexual orientation if he feels so.  
I don't think there is anything strange about someone thinking they might be gay. I don't find anything weird about wanting to learn Japanese or wanting to write poems, either. I think it is good for student to have hobbies even when they are not included in the curriculum. That reminds me, I should tell Neville Longbottom there are optional poetry classes available if he is interested.'

She sipped her tea before saying, 'However it is a crime to steal someone's property or pretend to be someone one's not, and I will do my best to find out the person or persons responsible for it. Until then I cannot start accusing students of using potions without some serious evidence.'

Harry nodded, 'I understand. I just thought it would be good if someone knew about all this. Someone… adult, I mean.'

McGonagall smiled a sad smile and said, 'It's always good to know what's going on. Not all the students have the courage to come and talk with me. Do you have anything else on your mind?'

Harry shook his head but then said, 'Actually, I wanted to know what you think about Dene and how he affects the students. How is he related to Malfoy?'

McGonagall's smile widened, 'I have been waiting for you to ask that ever since he got here. I knew your curiosity would win.'

Harry blushed.

'It is not the first time we have a half-veela in our school. Let me tell you, it is pretty much the same effect every time. Although this boy is the first one who would be sorted into Slytherin if he had been here since his first year. Apparently he likes to use his veela allure more than necessary in order to banish boredom. About his relation to Malfoy; that is actually the most interesting part in all this. I talked with Denebola's mother and she made me keep a promise of not revealing his last name. I am the only one in this school who knows not only his last name but also where he is located in the family trees. Of course Draco Malfoy knows these things too but he is possibly under the same oath as I am. I have no idea whether Denebola himself has the possibility of talking about these things. You might ask him if you are interested enough."

Harry blinked and asked, 'But he is somehow related to the Black family, Hermione asked him and he said he is. And he looks a lot like Draco Malfoy. Malfoy's mother is part of the Black family so he must be related to Malfoy from his mother's side.'

McGonagall smiled and then laughed, 'You might make a prolific career as a detective, Mr. Potter. I could tell you a little more but then I think you should let the families keep their family secrets. Everyone is allowed to have secrets, Mr. Potter.'

Harry nodded, 'I know. I promise I won't ask you or anyone else anything if you tell me something more about him.'

McGonagall turned around and walked to a _cupboard_ (the word gave Harry shivers nowadays) and pulled out a book. She opened it in page 245 and turned it around for Harry to see. It was the Black family tree.

Harry stared at the pages and read every name several times before looking up at McGonagall,  
'I can't see him in here.'

McGonagall said, 'Don't say any of the names aloud, Mr. Potter, I have no idea when I'm crossing the line of the oath and I do not wish to explode into pieces.'

Harry nodded. She pointed her finger on one of the names. _Alphard Black _it said. Harry blinked and counted the years in his head and said, 'But he's way too old to be his father.'

'That's right, go on…' McGonagall smiled. Harry frowned and stared at the name, trying to come up with different solutions.

'But according to this he didn't get married or have any children.' Harry said and looked up again.

McGonagall nodded. Harry sighed and decided to start guessing different things until he'd hit the right one,

'But he did have a child… at least one?' He asked.

Her smile widened and she nodded. Harry released a breath and stared at the family tree for a while before saying,

'He didn't know about the child because otherwise it would be in here?' He guessed, it was a long shot but he didn't come up with anything else.

She nodded again.

'But since Denebola knows he's related to the Black family, somewhere in the run someone, it had to be either her mother or father, found out the identity of this person?' He pointed Alphard Black's name on the page.

She nodded. He sat still and let the information set into some sort of form in his head. Alphard Black had had a child (at least one) of which no one knew about (since it wasn't on the tree) and that child must've been Dene's mother or father. And either his father or mother must've been a veela. What did that make him to Draco Malfoy? Maybe Malfoy's mother was about the same age as the unknown Black family member.  
This is too complicated, Harry decided. Maybe there was no other secret but the fact that most of the Black family didn't know there had been at least one member more, and apparently Malfoy's mother did know. Maybe they were made to keep the secret too.

'How come they look so much alike?' Harry asked.

'Draco Malfoy and Denebola?' McGonagall asked. Harry nodded and she answered,

'Either it's purely coincidental or he knows of charms by using which he can change his appearance.'

Harry blinked several timed before saying, 'Thank you for letting me know all this. Thank you.'

Then he got up and left the room.


	6. Snakes hissing

Zinnia says: There used to be a poem in here - not anymore! If you feel like hearing the poem, then send me a pm, and I'll be happy to grant your wishes.

**Chapter 6 - Snakes hissing**

Harry couldn't sleep that night either. He stared at the curtains around his bed, prepared for someone invisible to come and meet him. The Marauder's map was spread wide open on his lap. No-one came. Even Malfoy was staying in the Slytherin common room the whole night. Maybe McGonagall had talked with him already.

Thursday morning he ate breakfast alone. Luna was in Japan, Hermione was now in the hospital wing with her headaches and Ron was still there too.

He'd seen Neville the previous evening. He had been sitting in front of the fireplace writing poetry.

Seamus came to breakfast a little late but Harry was happy to see him, until Seamus announced he was going on holiday in Edinburgh! In the middle of the school term, for two weeks! To learn Gaelic! ('McGonagall said it was alright.')

Harry wanted to shout. Why was the whole world around him suddenly changing like this? Everyone was out of their mind!

And everything seemed to have something to do with Dene.

Harry glanced at the Slytherin table, like every morning.

Dene was talking to Malfoy who still looked tired and ate seemingly reluctantly.

That's when it hit Harry. Malfoy at least was acting pretty normally! It was completely normal for Malfoy to be planning something and sneak around at nights, even if he had stayed in his bed all last night. Harry really should start watching him in Marauder's map from now on, just in case, even if he had promised McGonagall not to follow the boy around.

So whatever there was going on didn't affect Malfoy. Except Malfoy was looking tired and stressed out all the time. Did that mean Malfoy was the one who caused all this chaos?

How big a role did Dene have in all this? He was a mystery.

The morning owl dropped him an envelope,

_Have you noticed what's happening? I am the only one you can trust now. I know what's going on around here. I cannot find a safe way for you to contact me but we have to meet face to face.  
If you cannot meet me, you will get into a serious danger, as will the whole school.  
I wish we could meet sooner but it has to be Sunday.  
Sunday at six, in the boys' bathroom on the third floor.  
On Sunday I will tell you everything I know. Before that destroy everything I've sent you by far, including this.  
Don't tell anyone about our meeting, otherwise you'll put as both in immediate danger.  
Try to remember the earlier warnings as well: no dates, no fresh air, no snakes. _

Harry folded the envelope and put it in his pocket just like the others.

He was seriously worried now.

One thing was for certain; he would be in the boys' bathroom on Sunday at six.

Neville sat down opposite of him and said, 'Harry, have you ever been interested in poetry?'

Harry shrugged, 'Not really. Why?'

Neville smiled, 'Well… I've noticed everyone's been skipping a lot of classes this week, and then there's also the stomach flu spreading around, and I wondered… I'm planning on attending this poetry class, but they've already started a couple of weeks ago so I thought it would nicer to go if I had someone with me, at least for the first time. Would you come with me?'

Suddenly the idea didn't seem that bad. That was probably the most normal thing he'd heard this morning and maybe it would make him forget everything else for a while.

'Sure, why not.' He said and smiled.

They ended up being two minutes late and when they entered the classroom and quickly sat down in the back of the class Harry was more than surprised to see Dene standing on a small podium in front of the class. He had a book open on his hands and he held it elegantly, like it was something precious. He didn't even look at the book but clearly knew the words by heart. His wonderful, calm and soft voice filled the room as he spoke.

He recited one act of the whole poem, and it was wonderful. About saviours, and ripples on the water's surface.

Then he closed the book and nodded just a little, before letting his eyes fall on Harry. Harry melted and smiled. _He was an angel._

The whole room erupted into clapping and whistling while Dene smiled a calm, satisfied smile before taking elegant steps and sitting in the front row. Harry realised Malfoy was sitting there too, next to him and could clearly see that Malfoy wasn't clapping.

Why would Malfoy be there in the first place? Unless he and Dene were somehow inseparable.

'Now, does anyone know which poem that was?' The teacher asked and Harry frowned in surprise as Malfoy's pale hand rose in the air,

'It was Love-less, Act 2.'

'That's correct. Would you happen to know the author as well?'

'It's origin is unknown. However wizards have been quoting and reading it for centuries whereas muggles have only now gotten their hands on it for the first time. It is expected to spread among the youngsters during this decade.'

The teacher seemed to be speechless before saying, 'Well, we seem to have an expert on Muggle studies. Well done, I must say. Although I must ask, why do you assume it would spread amongst the younger Muggles?'

'Videogames, Sir. It is planted in a game so everyone playing it will learn at least the Act 1.'

'Oh, I see,' The teacher said although he didn't sound very sure he understood at all.

As the class finally was dismissed, Dene caught Harry's eyes and walked right up to him,

'Hi, Harry. How are you?'

_That smile could probably melt all the glaciers in the world._

'I'm fine, how about you?' Harry asked, while his brain was getting all misty.

_Those soft, calm eyes,  
their colour like ice,  
so beautiful words cannot describe…_

'I'm good. Harry, I was wondering… would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me on Saturday?'

_Oh God, yes, I'll go anywhere you want me to go…_

Harry woke up from the haziness as he heard someone coughing and he glanced over Dene's shoulder. Malfoy was right there, staring at Harry with burning eyes and suddenly he shook his head, then mouthed 'NO!' to Harry.

Harry moved his eyes back to Dene's. _Oh so beautiful, I wish I could just…_

'I'm sorry, I can't. Not this Saturday at least. Maybe the next Saturday, if that's alright with you?'

Dene seemed disappointed for a moment but then reached his hand and took Harry's hand, stroke his thumb over Harry's skin. Harry kept staring at the thumb, mesmerized. _Yes, so warm, yes…_

Suddenly Malfoy's fingers appeared on top of Dene's and Malfoy's voice seemed all soft too,

'Come on, Loveless, let's go outside,' With that Dene let go of Harry's hand and Draco wrapped his arm around Dene's waist and smoothly they left.  
Harry and Neville stared long after them.

_Malfoy is falling for him too, _Harry thought_, that's why he didn't want me to say yes when Dene asked me out. And I was stupid enough to think for a brief second that maybe Malfoy was jealous of me. _

If only Sunday would come already and make some sense into everything.

In the evening Harry sat in his bed and stared at Marauder's map. The little dot with Malfoy's name above it had just gone up to the seventh floor. Then it disappeared.

Wonderful, Harry thought, he is really planning something in the Room of Requirement.

I really need to keep an eye on him; he must've been planning something big the whole autumn.

Suddenly the dot with Malfoy's name appeared again.

What? He was in the room for less than five minutes. What the hell was with that?  
The dot moved quickly back to the Slytherin dungeon, while Harry stared another dot with another name on top of it.

Dene (whose last name even the map didn't know) had appeared out of nowhere and was now walking right after Malfoy.  
Malfoy seemed to be running now but soon they were both in the same Slytherin dormitory.

Harry watched mesmerized as the two dots suddenly appeared to be either standing really closely, or possibly… possibly they were in bed.  
When the dots looked like just one dot and the names were so close to each other it was difficult to read them, Harry knew it.  
They were in the same bed and one of them was lying on top of the other. _They're having sex…_

Needless to say, Harry didn't sleep that night either.  
He wished he could switch places with Ron who was still gagging the in the infirmary. Harry would be happy to throw up right now. Although not because of the idea of the two blonds having sex but because he did have feelings for both of them, he could admit that now, the jealousy made him feel nauseous.  
He did fancy Dene a lot, maybe even more than he fancied Malfoy.  
They looked so much alike, they were both very beautiful, even now when Malfoy was merely Dene's shadow.

That's it then, Harry decided, I have to stop thinking about them. I'm clearly obsessed with both of them.

When Friday morning dawned Harry sat in the Gryffindor table with Neville. He had been skipping so many classes this week he knew he would get into trouble but what could he do?  
He couldn't concentrate on anything and he was tired, he had been barely sleeping since the invisibility cloak had been stolen.  
He didn't have the energy to start following anyone or trying to find out who the person might be.  
He really should – but he couldn't concentrate on thinking about it.

'Harry, come on, it'll do you good. Look at you, you could really use some fun.' Neville was trying to talk Harry into going to Interhouse Play Night tonight.

Harry felt miserable but didn't know what else he might do. Hermione and Ron had been mostly sleeping while they were in the infirmary. They couldn't give him any company and there seemed to be only a couple of 8th years left who weren't either abroad or ill.

'Oh alright, I'll come,' Harry muttered and sighed. He wasn't really enthusiastic about it.

So there they were. All the 8th year students, who were currently available to join the event. There were maybe twenty of them and most of them were Slytherins, which was fairly surprising considering there weren't too many of them for their 8th year.

Harry drank Butterbeer to keep himself busy, while a girl from Ravenclaw (whose name Harry couldn't recall) pulled out the names from the magical lottery hat.

First Neville had to give a whole body massage to a girl from Hufflepuff – they stayed in the cupboard exactly the ten minutes they were supposed to.  
The names, which were already called were not put back into the hat so that everyone had only one task to do. The game would continue until all of them had done one task each.

The Ravenclaw who was pulling out the names was next up with Blaise Zabini, and their task was to write each other love poems and read them a loud – how lame, Harry thought. It wasn't hard to guess who had come up with that task – either Neville or Dene.

The tasks were written on the same notes as the students' names, but on the other side and they were spelled to switch places so you didn't have to do the exact same task every time. For example like this,

'Intense kissing for… five minutes and…'

The girl turned the cards around,

'Harry and… oh my, Dene.'

Harry choked on his Butterbeer so badly Neville slapped him in the back.

'I'm fine,' he muttered more than embarrassed. It was the exact same task he and Malfoy had gotten last time.

He looked up, Malfoy looked furious before grasping Dene's arms and pleading,

'You don't have to do that, you know.' He was clearly trying to hide his distress but it was so obvious it almost hurt to look at. Harry watched the scene with fascination.

Was that what Malfoy looked like when he was jealous? It was only fair his sweet angel would snog someone else – they weren't supposed to act like that, they were related, for Merlin's sake!

Dene smiled at Harry and then brushed his fingers on Malfoy's hair, 'It's okay. Everything's going to go smoothly, you'll see.'  
Malfoy's fingers were still clutching Dene's left arm, knuckle white. Dene placed a small kiss on Malfoy's neck and suddenly Malfoy looked up at Harry.  
Harry held the gaze. The grey eyes were full of storm, chaos, pain and panic. Burning with jealousy.  
The complete opposite of the next set of grey eyes which were now watching at Harry, these eyes were full of warmth, glinting with mischievousness.

Dene stood up and Malfoy let go of his arm reluctantly. The tempting looking lips, which curved into a warm smile, were directed to Harry, 'Let's go, Harry.'

Harry stood up, his legs felt numb, and so did his brain.  
He didn't know how he felt about anything right now.  
Dene offered his hand to Harry, who took it and immediately felt a bit more relaxed. The warmth seemed to flow from the boy's hand and rush through his whole body.

As the Cupboard started to count the numbers from three to one, and the boys took their places in front of the doors, Dene looked over his shoulder at Malfoy and said,

'I'll see you in a minute.'

Harry had to let go of the boy's hand to enter the cupboard and as he stepped in, all the noise from the previous room vanished with the thud of the now closed door.

The silence was as devouring as the darkness before the three star lights were lit one by one.

'Would you give us some more light, please?' Dene asked.

'Certainly,' the Cupboards familiar voice filled the small place just before the ceiling lit up with at least a dozen of small star lights.

Dene turned to look at Harry and smiled, 'Finally.'

Harry swallowed and couldn't say anything. The white, long haired boy stepped closer and his body pressed against Harry's. Harry couldn't breathe. _He looks just like an angel, all pure, innocent white, so warm and calming, how could I ever resist him? I'm going to get so hard in a matter of seconds._

Then the elegant, long fingers stroked Harry's neck. Dene's right hand was on Harry's left wrist, he was wrapping his fingers around it in a tight grip. Harry was drowning in the eyes, which now looked almost white because of the bright white star lights.

'Close your eyes,' the angel whispered and Harry obeyed.

As Dene tilted his head to lean into the most wonderful kiss ever, and brushed Harry's lips very softly, there was a small clinging sound which made Harry automatically open his eyes, pull back a little and say,  
'Wait.'

The cause of the sound was visible now that Dene had tilted his head; in the middle of all the white hair there was a silver earring with two silvery snakes hanging on it.  
Dene looked at Harry and asked, 'Something wrong?'

Harry shook his head and asked, 'Where did you get the earring?'

'My mother,'

Dene dropped his gaze and looked at their hands, it made Harry look down too. Harry's fingers were holding Dene's right wrist but Harry could see something dark under his palm and slowly moved his hand to see what was underneath it.

A tattoo of a black snake.

Harry pulled his hand away as if it had burned, Dene looked surprised and there was a flicker of coldness before it was replaced by the usual warmth,

'Harry, what's wrong?'

Harry shook his head, tying to come up with a believable lie, 'Nothing. I just… I'm afraid of snakes.'

'Oh, Harry' The boy purred and placed his hands on Harry's cheeks, 'They're not real, I'll protect you.'

Then the boy quickly kissed Harry, who pulled away, 'Wait.'

Another flicker of coldness before replaced by the tempting warmth. The small flicker was suddenly enough to clear Harry's head; the boy didn't look so much like Malfoy anymore, but reminded him more of Lucius.

Hesitating Harry realised he wanted out of there as quickly as possible and he leaned into the boy's lips, but held the boy's arms in tight grip, just to make sure the damned tattoo didn't get anywhere near him.

Dene moaned and sucked Harry's tongue. It did feel good but Harry tried to block the feeling away like he was fighting imperius curse. He was counting minutes in his head, trying to concentrate only on that, like his life depended on it. All he wanted to do was to give in, let the feeling come, it felt so good but no, he wouldn't let it.

Dene was clearly trying to get his arms loose from Harry's grip but he wouldn't let go.

Another minute began and Harry thought it was going pretty well. He could concentrate on the counting only barely but he managed to keep most of the lusty feeling at bay. Dene was biting his lower lip, _now that felt nice_ and almost distracted the counting.

The blond boy moaned again and tried to press his groin against Harry's but Harry took one step back and pushed the boy's arms back a little, just to get a little distance. _No, don't you try to overpower me, it's not going to happen. _

The time went by quite fast, in fact, when one counted every second. He was already counting the last minute and was relishing the fact it would soon be over. Then Dene made some sweet, soft whiny noise in the back of his throat and Harry felt like melting again. _No, no, no…_

He didn't lose the count but was afraid he'd counted too fast so he began the sixth minute in his head, just to make sure. Dene was sucking his tongue so hard Harry was afraid it would come off but it felt nice, it made him think of sucking other places. _No, what am I thinking_, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60.

'Done,' he pulled away, let go of Dene's arms and panted. He hadn't realised how breathless he was.

Dene didn't move, didn't even open his eyes as he too was panting like Harry had tried to smother him.

'Cupboard, open the doors,' Harry said.

'They are open.' The Cupboard answered and Harry left as quickly as he could, not even looking back at Dene.

As he stepped back into the Room of Requirement, Dene had suddenly come out of the Cupboard as well, from the other door of course, and was now standing beside Harry.

Harry met Malfoy's gaze and saw him clench his jaw, although he looked somewhat relieved the boys were back.

For some reason Harry felt embarrassed. Like he'd done something he shouldn't have.  
Especially as Dene sat down next to Malfoy and whispered something to him. Malfoy pulled the blond into an everlasting hug and smiled a little before lifting his eyes from the floor and looked up at Harry who was still standing in front of the Cupboard.

_He's in love. He's in love with him_, Harry's mind screamed in panic as the feeling bit his chest like an hungry animal. He'd never seen Malfoy's eyes like that. They were filled with fragile emotions, softness amongst the hurt.

Before he even knew what he was doing, he left the room and ran.


	7. Creators of Chaos

**Chapter 7 Creators of Chaos**

He didn't know where he was going until he was in the boys' bathroom on third floor.

He washed his face and looked at himself in the mirror.

_Why does it hurt so much? Why am I so jealous? It's Malfoy for Merlin's sake. _

Harry took a deep breath and washed his face again.

He let the water run down his neck and inside his shirt.

_Everything's so chaotic. I still have no idea who Dene is, were the snakes just a coincidence? Malfoy too had had a snake ring last Saturday. _

_If only it was Sunday already._

Soon it was Sunday. He'd been spending the two previous nights sitting in his bed with Marauder's map, closing his eyes with the jealousy while watching the two dots with D's above them. Those blond boys were inseparable.

He had been spending the whole Saturday in the hospital wing with Ron. Neville had shown up there and recited them a poem. It made Harry feel sick.

On Sunday at ten to six Harry took the Marauder's map with him and kept eyes glued to it until he reached the boys' bathroom on third floor. On the map there were no dots with names nearby his name.

He held his wand tight in hand as he stepped into the bathroom. It seemed to be empty. Water was dripping somewhere creating an eerie atmosphere.

He looked at the map again. No people nearby and when he lifted his eyes he noticed an envelope on the floor, near the sink.

Harry took slow steps, carefully listening to his surroundings and glancing at the map ever few seconds. As he reached the envelope, he decided it was easiest to sit down on the floor; that way he could have both the map and his wand nearby even if he needed his hands to open the envelope and pull out the paper.

There were several papers inside the envelope.

He began to read the first one,

_Hi Harry,_

_I'm sorry I'm late. I need you to read all these letters before we meet so relax and read all of them carefully.  
In these letters I will explain you all you need to know about what's happening tonight.  
Yes, something's happening tonight but I will keep you safe._

_I am the only one able to protect you from what's happening today. That is why you need to trust me completely. In under any circumstances tonight do not panic and do not do anything.  
You will be the observer tonight. I will merely show you what's going on._

_This is important: you need to keep reading this.  
Don't stop the reading, whatever might happen around you.  
If you understand everything I'm saying right now, then you also understand that I am a friend, who has an elaborate plan to keep you safe.  
That is why you cannot participate in anything - you will let me guide you through all this.  
That is the only way both you and I will be alive when tomorrow comes._

_As I said before, and I know I will have to repeat this since I don't know if I have your trust or not, you cannot stop reading these letters, whatever happens.  
The information in these letters is more important than the fact that I will come to you soon.  
In fact, I'm planning on coming there while you're reading this. _

_No, don't look up. Keep your eyes on this, keep reading. Keep reading even if you hear my footsteps or whatever. _

_Once I get there I will need to take your wand away from you. Don't panic, I know it's scary, but that is only needed because we are going somewhere together. Outside Hogwarts and you cannot have your wand there. _

_You don't need it because I will bring you an object that will keep you safe._

_In fact, I will give you three objects._

Suddenly Harry's wand and the Marauder's map that were on the floor were snatched away from his reach and he automatically looked towards the direction it was snatched from but didn't see anything. He felt vulnerable but didn't let himself panic.  
_Great, she or he has my invisibility cloak, wand and the map, _he thought.  
He looked at the seemingly empty and quiet room around him before returning to the letters. He had read the first page and began with the next one,

_The three objects are all extremely important. I have put them on a necklace and I will put it on you when the time is right. _

_The first of the three objects is a portkey that will take both you and me outside Hogwarts. It will activate very soon after touching your skin. Yes, it is designed to activate when you, Harry, touch it. You might recognize this specific object, since you've seen it before. _

_The next object is a ring, in which I've planted the most powerful shield and protective charms possible, ones that you have never even heard of. I have tested this ring enough to promise you it will block any curse or hex possible, including the unforgivables. This ring will keep you safe tonight, no matter what happens. _

_The third object is another portkey. I designed it to activate exactly three minutes after the first portkey, so you will spend only three minutes in the place where we are going tonight. This portkey will bring you back to Hogwarts. When it activates, it will bring you into a cupboard. Yes, a magical cupboard where you can use magic – it is not the same cupboard used by students on weekends. _

_As soon as you've arrived in the cupboard, take the necklace off and don't touch it. The first portkey might activate again with the touch of your skin – and you don't want that._

_When you get back to Hogwarts you will find your invisibility cloak hidden in one of the cubicles in this bathroom. Underneath the cloak you will find your wand, any other objects I might've taken away from you before we left, along with this letter and two other letters. One letter explains some of the things you witness tonight, along with explanations about what's going on etc. Read it carefully. I added some of my own ideas of what you could do with the information – or what I think you need to do. The other letter is about me, my role in this. I hope you will read that one too. _

_I was hoping you'd find out my identity after we got to the place where we are going tonight. Unless you already know who I am. _

_Now, take time to absorb all this and when you are ready to go, close your eyes and say "I'm ready" and I'll put the necklace on you._

_You have nothing to fear, I promise. _

_Once we get to our destination be observant, take a close look at the people you see there, you need to remember their faces. I already wrote down most of their names in the letter which you get to read later on tonight. _

_Trust me. _

Harry had finally reached to the end of the third page and sighed. There was too much information. He was really worried now. Where would they go? Why were there people where they were going and why couldn't he have his wand with him? Why did he need an object with all the possible protective and shielding charms?

Harry had no idea about the writer's identity. It could be anyone really.

Did he trust the person? Yes, he decided, he would have to since that person had his belongings and had been constantly writing about danger – there must be some real threat to the whole school or something. Harry had all along known that there was something weird going on in Hogwarts. He had been right, and now he would finally receive an explanation.

He put the letter down on the floor, didn't bother to look around in the seemingly empty bathroom and closed his eyes,  
"I'm ready."

He did hear footsteps but couldn't tell whether they were a man's or a woman's.

He took a deep breath, trying to stay as calm as possible but he was nervous.  
He tried to assure himself he wasn't scared but he was. Everything had been so secretive and vague – it was scary.

Then he heard the footsteps come to halt behind him. His senses became oversensitive; trying to hear or smell anything that might give him a hint of the person's identity.

He could feel it; the person was close to his back, not enough to touch though. He could sense the hands that were putting the necklace over his head. The chain touched the back of his neck and he got cold shivers.

Then there was a faint clinking metallic sound, wait – that could be the snake silver earring!

"Wait! I'm not ready! I need to know something." He said and opened his eyes.

The hands were holding the necklace over his chest, apparently ready to pull the collar of the shirt enough to drop the necklace underneath the fabric to meet the skin.

The person behind him released a breath, the air met Harry's neck and made his abs clench.  
He was going to put his trust in this person. In these hands, which were holding the necklace, where there were three rings and one of them was the Slytherin ring. Malfoy's fingers were holding the necklace.

Harry had had those fingers on his lips about a week ago in the cupboard. Those exact fingers had been so gentle that time, and Harry had trusted him those seven minutes. Maybe even those five minutes before the seven minutes.

Harry asked, "What about the wards in Hogwarts? How do you know I can use a portkey to get back inside Hogwarts?"

Malfoy sighed, apparently irritated Harry should start asking questions. When he didn't answer, Harry said, "I know who you are. I just need to know for a fact that your plan will work."

When Malfoy's voice hit the skin on Harry's neck, his whole body tensed and went into goose bumps,

"I've tested it by myself several times and it's worked perfectly every time. I even told the cupboard you're coming, she's waiting for you."

Harry turned his head slowly, just enough to get Malfoy's face in his peripheral vision,

"Zinnia?"

"Yes. You ready to go?" Malfoy's voice was tense. Harry realised he was waiting for Harry to withdraw or attempt an escape. He sighed and hesitated but made a decision,

"Yes, I'm ready."

Malfoy pulled the collar open enough to drop the necklace between the shirt and Harry's chest and then quickly wrapped his arms around Harry's waist and chest.

The suction of the portkey began. Harry felt nauseous when the scenery went all blurry, then black, then blurry again and he thought he was going to get sick as the new scenery met his vision.

They were outside, standing on a grass plain. It was cloudy and pretty dark and the wind felt cold on his skin although Malfoy's arms felt hot and tight around him.

There were popping sounds, as figures started to appear out of thin air. Immediately they all glanced at Harry and started to form a circle. As the last two figures appeared Harry couldn't help but stare at the boy and the woman that looked almost identical in their long, white robes and with their long, white hair. He realised it at once; Dene and his mother were the last ones to take their places and they both looked at Harry with calm grey eyes. Their lips curved into cold smiles as Malfoy declared, "I got him."

"I knew you would, I'm proud of you Draco," The woman in all white said. Then she continued,  
"Good evening, Harry Potter. You are our guest of honour tonight and you probably already noticed some familiar faces here…"

Harry glanced around and on the left side of the circle he could see some of the known former Death Eaters, he was surprised to see Narcissa Malfoy there too. From the right side he didn't recognize anyone. Malfoy suddenly opened his arms and stepped away from Harry. Harry had to look over his shoulder to see Malfoy take his place in the circle near his mother.

"Some of them are former Death Eaters, whereas the others are my followers from Norway. We are not Death Eaters. We call ourselves Chaos Creators and I am their leader.  
I have nothing against you personally, Mr. Potter. You just happen to have the symbolic value of a war hero from the previous war. They even call you the Saviour of the Wizarding world. Your death will be a sign to everyone that I will not let anything or anyone get in my way as I begin to build a new, greater wizarding world here in Britain, while getting rid of the contemporary one."

Harry watched in horror as Dene leaned against the woman and whispered something in her ear. The woman laughed softly and looked back at Harry, wrapping an arm around the blond boy,

"My son has told me a lot about you, Harry Potter. What do you think of him? Isn't he gorgeous, my sweet, little Edeneye?" The woman planted a kiss on Dene's smiling face.

Harry clenched his jaw; he had never seen anything so disgusting.

Before he managed to answer, the suction of the portkey began again and everything went blurry, then black, then blurry again and suddenly he was in a cupboard with star shaped lights in the ceiling. He quickly pulled the necklace over his head and threw it in the corner.

"Zinnia?" He called out.

"Yes. Harry?" The voice sounded exactly the same as in the other cupboard.

"You have a loo in here?" Harry asked.

"Yes, right over here." She answered and a door with golden frames appeared. Harry pulled the door open with force and ran to the toilet, threw his glasses on the floor and retched. He stood there a while, waiting for the nauseous feeling subside. Finally it did.

He sat on the floor and took a deep breath.

"I can't believe this. I can't believe this is happening to me again." He whispered to himself as he picked up his glasses and put them back on.

Then he slowly got up and returned to the main part of the cupboard.

"Tell me, does the time stop in this cupboard?" He asked the cupboard.

"Yes. Draco said it does, I can't really tell time." The cupboard answered.

"Draco?" The name echoed from Harry's mouth, as he suddenly began to wonder what was going on in the place where he'd just come from. The cupboard interpreted that as a question,

"Yes, Draco has been here a lot, I understand. In this cupboard you always have to do a task, Harry. Draco has given you a task, which you must fulfil."

"What kind of a task is that?" Harry asked.

"Here in the Slytherin bedroom on your left you will find a box. In the box there's a bracelet. You must put the bracelet on and that's when the task begins. After that you will go and get the things Draco has told you about and then you have to come back. I'll tell you the rest of the task after you've done this first part."

Harry frowned, "I can't recall him talking about any 'things' – do you mean my wand and such?"

The Cupboard was silent for a moment, "The letters he wrote you. But if you think he meant something else too, then take whatever you think he meant."

Harry was already opening the new door on his left, where he did find a bedroom. The huge bed was covered in green silk and on top of it there was a black wooden box. Inside there was indeed a bracelet, which reminded him of those muggle handcuffs. Without hesitation he wrapped it around his left wrist. It made a clinking sound as the lock shut.

Then he went back and asked, "Alright. I have the bracelet on. Shall I go and fetch the stuff?"

The Cupboard answered, "Yes, please do. And when you come back, just ask the Room of Requirement to give you Zinnia – that's what Draco said he'd done. The door is open, you may go."


	8. The Master of all Cupboards

Zinnia says: I have nothing to do with the cupboard; it is NOT me even if I borrowed my name for her. Just so you know.  
**This is the last chapter**! There is a sequel to this story; it begins from where this chapter ends.  
**The sequel is called the Battle in the Cupboard.**

Chapter 8 _**The Master of all Cupboards**_

Harry ran all the way to the boys' bathroom on the third floor and rummaged around until he located his invisibility cloak in one of the cubicles. Malfoy had kept his promise; there was his wand, Marauder's map, and three letters underneath the cloak. He took the things, put the cloak on and walked back to the seventh floor. The bracelet Malfoy had given him was pulling him towards the Room of Requirement.  
Funny, Harry thought, Malfoy had clearly feared Harry would escape at this point and not return to the cupboard.  
_I need a room where Zinnia is, I need a room where Zinnia is…_

As he pushed the door open, there was the cupboard, which looked identical to the one they'd used during Interhouse Play Nights.

"Zinnia? I'm back. Let me in." He called out.

"Certainly, on my count, three, two, one…" The moon and the sun began to spin and Harry stepped inside.

There was the now familiar dark moment before the three star lights appeared one by one.

"Can you give me some more light, please?" Harry asked.

"Certainly," Said the Cupboard as the ceiling lit up. Harry sat down on the floor and looked at the necklace in the furthest corner. Along with the Slytherin ring there was one ring with a lion on it, it was golden, and then a third one of silver with moon and sun carved on it – the sun and moon seemed to be hugging each other.  
It wasn't hard to guess, which one was the one with the protective charms and which one was the portkey back to this cupboard.

Harry opened the first envelope (Envelope 1 it said on the cover) and started reading,

_Potter,_

_If you're reading this and I hope you are, it means you're alive and I've succeeded in my plans so far._

_There are things you need to do tonight, immediately actually. _

_You need to send a letter to the Aurors - use the Hogwarts owl called Mungy, he's the fastest of them all.  
In that letter tell everything you witnessed tonight, except don't mention me or my mother at all.  
I know that's a big favour to ask and I will owe you.  
Ask me anything you want in return and I'll do my best to grant your wishes. I mean this.  
I never wanted a part of anything to do with the new Death Eaters or the White Devils, as I call them.  
Right now as I'm writing this, I'm under severe stress and panic.  
I'm sitting in the cupboard and when I leave here, I'll be coming to meet you and put the prestige of my plan in action.  
I'm a nervous wreck right now so please excuse me if I'm jumping from one subject to another.  
I'm afraid I might forget something vital, there's too much of everything in my mind. _

_In my bedroom (here in the cupboard) you will find another envelope with your name on it.  
Inside it there are the papers that have all the names of the new and old Death Eaters you saw tonight.  
In a separate paper there are also names of new Death Eaters whom I have never seen but only heard of, I think the Aurors should catch them as well.  
Another paper has a map on it.  
On that map there are all the places where I know the White Devils have been living and meeting.  
I believe the place where the portkey will take us tonight is the place with number 5 on it, take a look at the map, if it looks like the place where you went tonight with me,  
then tell the Aurors to go there IMMEDIATELY.  
Potter, I might still be there with them and I need a way out.  
So tell the Aurors to hurry and hopefully they'll catch the whole lot of them. _

_Write the letter to the Aurors now!  
The cupboard will give you everything you need for the letter unless you find it all on my desk._

_Wait! You must write in the letter it was Dene who gave you the portkey.  
Yes, you're going to have to lie.  
Dene has both a silver snake earring which is designed to activate by your touch,  
and he also has a new dark mark (a snake) which is also designed to activate by your touch.  
Tell this to the Aurors and tell them it was he, who made you to touch his mark or earring. _

_Okay, go and write the letter now. Read the rest of these letters after you've sent it. _

_Remember every time you leave the cupboard the time starts ticking, so move fast. _

Harry put the letter down on the floor and stood up, he felt like he was in a dream as he walked into the Slytherin bedroom and started opening the drawers on a desk. He found the envelope and pulled out the papers to take a look at them.  
He had no idea how Malfoy had managed to use Harry's handwriting but they were clearly written with Harry's handwriting. Yes, the place on the map with 5 on it was the one.

There was paper and a quill on the table. He picked them up and started writing fast.  
The adrenaline was coursing through his veins as he described every detail and every word he'd heard. He glanced at the old scar Umbridge gave him before clenching his teeth and writing in the letter who had given him the portkey.

He put the letter and the papers Malfoy had written in an envelope and sealed it.

Suddenly the handcuff looking bracelet in his wrist opened and dropped on the floor. The Cupboard said, "You have done the task Draco gave you. The door is open."

Harry stood completely still for a moment. Then he asked,

"But I didn't even finish the first letter. Can I come back after I've taken this letter to the Owlery?"

"Please do," the Cupboard answered.

According to a tempus charm it took him less than five minutes to run to the Owlery and back before he was back into the Room of Requirement and entering the cupboard once more.

He sat back on the floor and continued the letter he was reading before,

_Now that you've done your part in all this (there's also going to be a lot of questions from the Aurors for you so be prepared for it) I will explain you all I know about what's going on.  
I'll start from the beginning and I won't go to the details._

_Soon after my father had died Dene and his mother (I have a spell on me, I can't write or say her name) came to us. They told us how they are related to our family. My mother had known of their existence but it had been kept as a family secret – it wouldn't do good to the family name and all that bullshit, you know what it's like, or do you – anyway, I hadn't even heard of them before that. I could see how much he looked like me, how much his mother resembles mine, and I thought they were alright. In a way I was glad to get some more family, I'm sure you'll understand at least that part. _

_They stayed with us. I was happy, thought I had a friend, almost wished he was my brother. It's so ridiculous when I think about it now.  
They fooled me too in the beginning._

_Then they said it; who they really were, what they really wanted.  
They wanted me and my mother to join them along with all the former Death Eaters. _

_When Dene first said he wanted to kill Harry Potter, I suddenly felt extremely angry._

_You had not many months ago saved my life from the fyendfire.  
You had defeated the person who had made my (and my family's) life a living hell for at least the last couple of years.  
And also you had testified, given me a new chance, a new start.  
I had been planning on finally starting to do things for myself, live my life the way I want to. _

_From that moment on I hated him. I hated everything about him right up to his rotten core. _

_I hated him more than I ever hated you – it's funny too, I don't hate you at all right now,  
I even began to wonder if I ever really hated you.  
At least I hate Dene in a completely different way._

_I wish I could kill him. I wish I could torture him and rip his insides out. _

_Anyway, his mother asked us boys, to get you, Potter, and bring you to their meeting so she could finish you off._

_She took my ring and his earring and planted the portkeys in them.  
She drilled a magical hole in the Hogwarts wards which enabled the portkeys to work.  
By doing so she accidentally gave me an opportunity to later on use the same hole with other portkeys.  
She's quite powerful, I must say. She's a veela and unbearably cunning and evil.  
She has found new ways to add black magic into her veela allure – taught it to her son too.  
That way they can put people under a mind spell that's pretty much like imperius –  
during this all you see is that they are beautiful, irresistible and you think you love them.  
It's not like love potions, you don't get too jealous of them, you just want to do anything that might please them – basically you become a slave and believe it's what you want.  
That's why most of your classmates are all around the fucking globe to learn poetry or whatever. _

_I was supposed to get you.  
And unless I managed to do that during the first months of the autumn, then Dene would join me and we'd do it together – or separately, which way suited us better. _

_That's why I was sneaking around during the nights. I was thinking.  
I was thinking about how can I find a way to keep Harry Potter safe while being a double agent and fool those White Devils._

_It was stressful since the time seemed to go by way too quickly and I couldn't think of anything,  
so I started to follow you around and sending you notes._

_It was quite fun. Especially when I knew you were following me too.  
But I didn't want you to find out my identity because I thought you'd trust even an anonymous note writer more than me! _

_I thought I needed you to realise that even though someone was following you,  
that person never did anything to try and hurt you.  
I never knew if you believed those notes and warnings or not._

_Then you caught me one night.  
I fainted, and when I woke up in the infirmary (thank you by the way) I found a hair of yours in my mouth.  
That night was the first time during the whole autumn when I laughed.  
I laughed so hard when I thought about drinking polyjuice, pretending to be you and stealing your invisibility cloak right under your nose.  
I did it, and it was so much fun and so easy. I even had a plan B for a while.  
To stun you, tie you up, wrap you in the cloak and throw you underneath my bed or something. _

_Then it happened. They didn't want to wait anymore and Dene came.  
He put his dark veela powers into full action.  
I watched in horror as the whole school went into a slumber, even you, Potter, I still wonder how you survived without choking on your own drool. _

_I don't blame you. He looks like me, who could resist me anyway. _

_No, that's not funny. I guess I'm nervous about tonight – joking is the easiest way to deal with it._

_Anyway, I almost panicked when I realised he might get you before me and I still didn't have any good plan.  
Thank Merlin I ended up with you in that cupboard last Saturday.  
It possibly saved both you and me (I don't know if I'll make it tonight but if you are reading this, then it saved you at least). _

_Usually when people go to the cupboard they just do the tasks and leave.  
No-one bothers to talk with the cupboard like we ended up doing.  
When she told us about Zinnia, my first thought was if I could use magic there.  
I went there on Sunday and as I realised the time stopped there as well, I knew I could do it – I could find a way to save you._

_Potter, I lived there about a couple of weeks, I don't know the exact amount of time because you can't really count the time inside the cupboard –  
tempus charm only shows you the reality time, i.e. the time you stepped inside the cupboard._

_As you recall, I once managed to mend a vanishing cabinet.  
Building new rooms inside this cupboard was easy compared to that.  
I built a bedroom, a kitchen, a laboratory and a library.  
Those will appear if you, Potter, ask for them.  
As I lived inside the cupboard I finally realised that I must actually take you to their fucking meeting, otherwise you would never believe what's going on._

_I didn't want to take you there.  
I chose Sunday as the prestige day to have one more week in reality.  
In this cupboard I could have as much time as I needed to plan every detail. _

_I regretted having written Sunday when you and Dene entered the other cupboard on Friday.  
I knew he was getting impatient, wanted to get you before I did (that's why he asked you out too).  
I didn't know if he knew you can't use magic in the cupboard.  
I was afraid if he did, he might've managed to do something about it. _

_When he said to me "I'll see you in a minute", I realised he didn't know –  
He thought he would get you to touch either the mark or the earring and send us all three in the middle of the Death Eater meeting.  
All the other Death Eaters have portkeys too.  
They all activate when you, Potter, touch any of them._

_Let's see… is there anything else I needed to tell you about what's been going on?_

_Oh, right, I poisoned Granger.  
I figured I can't have her around you, otherwise she'd somehow link me with the things that are going on etc.  
She's too smart. There's an antidote for her in the laboratory fridge.  
Don't worry; it was just a constant migraine, no real damage done. _

_Dene poisoned Weasley when they were kissing in the cupboard. There's an antidote for that too._

_For all the people who have been so deeply drugged with his dark veela powers or been feeling ill lately, there are potions for them too. _

_That's about it. If I'm still alive tomorrow and not in Azkaban, feel free to ask me anything._

_Don't come running to save me!  
I don't know if you would do that but if you even think about it, then don't!  
You'd just mess up my elaborate plans and kill us both!_

_Envelope 2 has something completely different. I still haven't decided whether I give it to you or not.  
Maybe I could put a spell on it, so that you could only open it in case I die. _

_In case I decide not to let you read the next letter ever and I die tonight, take care, Potter._

_~The Master of all Cabinets and Cupboards_

Harry put the letter on the floor and took a deep breath before collapsing against the wall behind him.

What if Dene's mother killed Malfoy tonight because Harry had escaped?  
How would Harry ever live with a burden like that? Malfoy had been suffering of the stress the whole autumn and all because he wanted to save Harry.

"Harry?" The Cupboard asked.

"Yes?"

"Draco asked me to tell you that if you feel like spending time in here, then there's food and drinks in the kitchen. If you want to sleep, you may use his bedroom."

Harry was quiet for a moment before saying, "Thank you."

Then he stood up and did walk into the bedroom. He stripped off all his clothes and fell onto the green silk sheets, crawled underneath the blanket and tried to sleep.

The silk felt nice. Everything smelled of Draco Malfoy. Harry realised he could recognize the smell anywhere. He felt like he'd missed that scent.  
"You should've told me. You should've told me everything when we were in the cupboard,"  
He whispered to his pillow.  
He took deep breaths, filling his lungs with the scent, letting it form new memory traces in his brain.

He wasn't sure if he ever wanted to leave the cupboard. What if Malfoy never came back?

He missed him, as new as the feeling towards Malfoy was; it was a feeling of longing.

Forcing himself to fall asleep he finally managed to do that.

When he woke up he stayed in the bed for a long time, inhaling the green silk.  
He fantasized Malfoy would suddenly appear to the door. He would sneer to the fact Harry was covered in green silk in his bed. He'd make some remark that would make Harry blush with embarrassment.

Harry didn't even bother dressing up as he forced himself back to the other room and fetched the last unread letter.

_Envelope 2_

_Potter,_

_If you're reading this then you're alive and that's a good thing._

_I really don't know how to say this, better yet I don't know a single reason why I'm telling you all this.  
If I died tonight and you would read this after I'm dead, then it would be ironical, I think. _

_Yes, I might die tonight. I don't know if Dene found out about certain things.  
It doesn't matter right now though.  
What matters is that I can't even imagine the moment if I don't die and I come back and you've read this._

_Here it comes. Don't laugh at me, Potter, or I swear I'll come and haunt you! _

_When we were in the cupboard, I told you of a thing that never happens to me these days.  
It's because of the constant stress and panic during the last couple of years, I just can't. _

_After you'd left the Room of Requirement, I left too.  
I left because my body surprised me by finally waking up. Thanks to you, Potter!  
I stood in the boys' bathroom in the third floor for an hour, cursing myself for the fact that it was happening.  
I couldn't stop it.  
I could hear the echoes of your moans in my head the whole night, I could hardly sleep.  
I wanted to hate you so much but I couldn't. _

_So that night I took the invisibility cloak that I'd had for a while already and took a big risk.  
I believed you'd already noticed the cloak was gone and I still took the risk of coming up to the Gryffindor tower._

_I was so nervous when I pulled open the curtain on your bed.  
I was waiting for you to jump right at me, hexes flying.  
But no, there you were, sleeping peacefully._

_I sat down and looked at you.  
I was wondering whether you could sense me or not, maybe you'd see a dream of me.  
I hoped you would. _

_Then I suddenly wanted to let you know I've (the mysterious follower who has your cloak) been there.  
I didn't want you to panic; I only wanted to give a sign.  
I ended up taking the snitch that I'd seen the day I searched after your cloak._

_When I put it on your palm, Potter, you automatically clenched your fingers around it and you smiled a little.  
You even made a small sigh of happiness._

_That is the most adorable thing I have ever seen._

I realised I would be willing to do anything, even kill myself in the process if needed, in order to save you. 

Harry stared at the letter for a long time.

"Zinnia, do you know how Draco is planning to get back to Hogwarts?"

"Yes. He said he'd either apparate or use a portkey to get back in this cupboard."

"Oh. But… does that mean I need to go out of here so that he can come in?"  
Harry asked.

"For you, Harry, the time has stopped. If you want to see Draco then you have to go to back to the real time so that time can move onwards for you."  
The cupboard's voice was calm, it felt comforting.

"Alright, that makes sense, kind of. Can I go outside this cupboard to wait for him and then come back in later on?" He asked.

"Yes, of course you can do that. The doors are open for you." The Cupboard said.

Harry picked up the letters from the floor where he'd left them, put them on Draco's desk and got dressed. He asked for the laboratory room and took some of the vials from the fridge; they were all labeled according to what they were for.  
Then he took a deep breath, wondering if he was willing to go outside.

What if Malfoy wouldn't come back? He didn't even want to think about it.

Then he pushed the door open and stepped outside.

He cast a tempus charm.

He walked around the room.

Then he walked from the left side to the right side, and back. Then repeated this twice.

He cast another tempus charm and left to the hospital wing. He gave the antidotes to Madame Pomfrey but couldn't stay there.

He went back to the Room of Requirement, sat down in the right side corner, leaned on the wall and waited.

He wondered for a moment if he should go and try to rescue Malfoy.

No, Harry would just interfere with his plans and get them both killed.

He sighed. There was nothing else but to wait.

Half an hour later he had cast tempus charm every five minutes and he was anxious.

He had never thought any nice things about Malfoy. Now he had to admit to himself that Malfoy had planned everything extremely carefully. Most of the planning had already succeeded perfectly. It must've been stressful to plan, while pretending to Dene he was after Harry.

Harry had honestly thought Malfoy was in love with that blond devil. It had looked so real a couple of days ago. The hurt, vulnerability and jealousy in Malfoy's eyes. He was truly the best actor Harry had ever seen.

Malfoy had even made the antidotes, apparently in the laboratory he'd built.  
See, he wasn't that bad a person at all.  
It was just the fact they had always hated each other, plus Malfoy used to be a Death Eater – Harry would've never thought Malfoy had grown up so much, and apparently changed his opinions on many things.

The things Malfoy had written in the last letter. Now that made Harry speechless.  
Had Malfoy really written he thought Harry had looked adorable?  
_Adorable? I wonder what the word would sound like if he said it aloud…_

Even thinking about it made Harry hide his face in his hands, his cheeks were burning hot.

He had also written he'd been hard because of Harry. That was… It felt unexpectedly good.

He cast another tempus charm. It was more than an hour he had sent the letter to the Aurors.

Maybe he should go and find McGonagall, tell everything to her.

No, he would stay here until tomorrow morning unless Malfoy came back before that.

_He has to come back; he has to make it…_

What am I going to do when he comes back? What am I going to say to him?  
Maybe he hates me now that I read the letter.

Are we going to be friends? Now that's a weird thought.

No, we can't be friends – that wouldn't work.

Why wouldn't it work though? This night just proves me I don't know him.  
I want to learn to know him.  
Merlin, I just want to see him and talk to him.  
Even if he sneers the whole time, I don't care. I want to see him.

How can I miss him? In real time it's not even that long ago when I saw him.

He pulled his knees up, hid his face against them and wrapped his arms around his legs.

"Potter?" The voice made him snap his head up.

Malfoy was standing on the door of the cupboard. He was leaning on the door frame, smirking. The clothes he was wearing were made of green silk and looked like something he might wear to bed. His hair looked darker than usual and then Harry realised it was wet and dripping with water.


End file.
